Something To Fear
by Masked Obsession
Summary: Post 6x16. Trapped in the lonesome Virginian woods and surrounded by Saviors, Glenn is forced to watch how everything he loves is violently taken away. In this thrilling alternative take, Glenn isn't the one to die that night. But he will be the one to exact his brutal and bloody vengeance on the man who created it. Even if it means heading down a dark and horrific path.
1. 하나 The Day Will Come When You Won't Be

"Don't worry about what's gone wrong. Figure out how to make this go right."

~Glenn Rhee

"Eeny. Meeny. Miney. Moe."

Four words that would signal the beginning of the end.

How could such a simple child's nursery rhyme turn into a horrid game that meant life or death? A nursery rhyme Glenn planned to teach his future child was somehow now the harbinger of tragedy? Is _this_ what the world had succumbed to?

"Catch. A. Tiger. By. His. Toe."

Glenn looked at the wooden monstrosity of Lucille as it was displayed before him. The barbed wire practically grazed his cheek as it moved past him.

"If. He. Hollers. Let. Him. Go."

Glenn wanted to run to his wife when he saw her shudder at the bat. She looked like she was nearly going to pass out. Her pale skin was dripping with sweat; her body shaking uncontrollably. If by some God forbidden chance _she_ were to end up as the victim of this, he would not hesitate in jumping in and taking the hit himself. That wasn't even a choice.

"My. Mother. Said. To. Pick. The. Very. Best. One."

As the rhyme continued, his gaze focused on Rick. Seeing Rick this broken and terrified, sent chills down Glenn's spine. He had never once seen Rick like this, in spite of everything they had encountered. Their situation was truly hopeless.

"And. You... Are... It."

He couldn't even bring his eyes to look up to see if the barbed end of Lucille was in front of him. He was afraid he would meet Maggie's horrified eyes in the process. But then he heard Negan speak away from him and he finally looked to see who had fallen prey to this sadistic predator.

Daryl.

He would not beg, sob, or scream. No way in hell was he going to allow Negan this victory. He accepted his face with a hardened gaze, appearing as if Negan was at Daryl's mercy. Negan merely grinned at Daryl as he said:

"Anybody moves or says anything, cut the boy's other eye out and feed it to his father. Then we'll start. You can breathe, you can blink, you can cry. Hell, they're all going to do that."

Glenn could hear everyone around him crying out, but he remained silent. He couldn't bring himself to yell; his throat was clenched in Fear's cold hand.

Rick stared in disbelief and choked, "Please... don't."

Negan answered Rick with a sickening blow to Daryl's skull. Not even Glenn could hold back his scream with the rest of the group.

"Whoa! Taking it like a champ!" Negan praised.

Daryl, with blood streaming down his face, pulled himself off the dirt and managed to say, "You hit me again...You best pray I'm dead."

Maggie, who was besides Daryl, could only breathe heavily and clutch her stomach in disgust as Negan continued to bludgeon her friend. She started to vomit up a mixture of blood and digested food onto the ground, which Glenn immediately took notice of.

"Maggie! Maggie!" Glenn jumped to his feet, but was instantly pinned down by Dwight.

Maggie lifted her head towards her husband's direction, and some of Daryl's blood splattered below her eye. All the stress and fear sent her already weak body into shock. Her heart started to beat irregularly; it started to quiver and contract strongly. The pain, the adrenaline, and the sudden drop in blood pressure meant she could no longer support herself upright and collapsed next to Rick. No one except Glenn watched as her eyes rolled to the back of her head as they were all focused on Negan and Lucille. Negan didn't even bother to pause his murderous actions as Maggie's breathing slowed to a halt.

Glenn's futile cries went unnoticed with the much louder swings of the bat. He desperately tried to free himself from Dwight to no avail. His eyes could only gape in despair and terror as his longtime friend and wife died in front of him.

Just like that everything that had given him hope in this apocalyptic world had vanished in an instant. His wife, their child, were gone.

Daryl, a man who had started out rough around the edges and eventually became a treasured friend, was gone.

The remaining members, who were already weeping, wept even harder once they saw Maggie's body lying motionless on the ground. Rick tried shaking her awake, crying out her name over and over as if she would hear and the whites in her eyes would disappear.

Negan shifted his gaze from Daryl's body to Maggie's and his expression softened a little.

"Well, isn't that a damn shame. I just wanted one of you to die." He swiftly turned to Glenn, who was still struggling to get to his wife. "I'm doing you a favor by the way," he addressed him as he raised his bat. Too buried in grief and horror, Glenn didn't even realize what was about to occur. But at this point, what did it matter if he did or not. He would have a clear view of the brutality Negan was about to bring forth.

Negan looked down at the female body below him again, his face unreadable. One could argue it almost panged him to do this. But he intended to finish what he started.

With a mighty swing, Lucille was brought down once more.

A/N: Since there has been confusion and claims of Maggie's death being illogical, she (ironically) died from fright. This is actually medically possible even for someone who is perfectly healthy. But Maggie was already under intense stress and severely weakened from her pregnancy, and Daryl's beating only worsened her condition.


	2. 둘 What Comes After Part 1

"I care more about her than I do about me"

~Glenn Rhee

The other woman who was next to Daryl in the lineup continued to stare at the ground as tears rolled down her cheeks. A pair of boots come into her line of sight, causing her body to be racked with uncontrollable sobs.

"What's wrong now, honey? You're too pretty to be crying like that," Negan mocked. "It looks like you've got a little stain on your face. Actually, it's a big stain," he snickered.

Before he could continue on his taunts, something else called his attention away from Rosita. The tortured cries of a broken man.

Negan gave Glenn a look of pity as he crouched down beside him with Glenn returning a look of pure hate. "You shouldn't be mad at me. I don't think ya would've wanted to see her as one of those _things_ , now would ya?"

Glenn broke his staredown with the sociopath, choosing instead to get Dwight off of him. "Don't even think about it," Dwight muttered as he pressed Glenn back down to the ground.

"I'm going to kill you," a deep voice spoke.

Negan grinned at this, clearly amused by this defiance. He already knew who the voice belonged to.

"Not today. Not tomorrow. But I will kill you," Rick seethed as Negan slowly approached him. "With what? Dwight's crossbow?" Negan gave his signature smirk at the disobedient "leader" who was ready to lunge at him. Preventing this, he roughly yanked Rick up and dragged him to the center, facing the lineup.

"I did warn you all," Negan gestured at Carl while making eye contact with Dwight. The burnt man grimaced at this, but followed orders. He grabbed the teenager by the arm and threw him beside his father. With no time to process what was happening, Negan already had a blade circling Carl's eye.

"He moved," Negan motioned to an appalled Glenn.

This immediately caused a stir from the remaining members; the yelling and crying started up again. Carl wiggled frantically in Negan's grasp, seeking to get away from this monster before he completed his dark intention.

"Don't do this! Kill me! Kill me instead! Please! Kill me!" Rick begged, hysteria evident in his tone.

"Dad," Carl responded, keeping his voice calm. "No. I'd rather be blind than have you die."

"No! I'm the one who disobeyed! Don't kill him! Let me die!" Glenn screamed and did not stop. His thoughts raced violently in his head, but none were clear enough to understand. His incoherent voice drowned out any idea.

Negan scoffed at this pathetic display in front of him. Nevertheless, he released Carl, who then huddled close to his dad.

"It's a good thing the man moved when his girl was dying instead of when Lucille came to feed," Negan joked. But his mood abruptly turned threatening. "Let this be known. If any of you defy me again, this will all seem like preschool," he eyed Rick at the last half.

Rick nodded his head furiously while sweat, tears, and mucus covered his face. "We work for you now."

"Okay, boys. Looks like we're through here. It's already dawn and I am exhausted! I cannot wait to get back to my warm bed!" Negan signaled for his men to pack up. Rick remained in the same spot, staring blankly ahead of him. One of the Saviors went to Daryl's body and snapped a Polaroid of what remained.

Negan climbed into his truck and adjusted the rearview mirror to see the group. He had never seen such devastation since... since this whole world ended. The truck is started and Negan drove off without smiling or laughing for once.

Finally able to move without fear of repercussion, Glenn dropped at his wife's side, clutching her damaged body. His sniffles turn into loud wails as this whole night replayed in his mind. He did not care about how noisy he was. He wanted the world to know what it had done to him.

Sasha rubbed her eyes free of tears and pushed herself to her feet. She was not going to let some hyper-masculine nutjob break her. She was going to fight... for Daryl... for Maggie. Alongside Abraham and the rest of her family, they would end Negan. She promised that to herself. She noted how she was the only one on her feet. Eugene covered his face with his hands. Aaron stared at his knees. Michonne had a hand covering her mouth. Rick and Carl had not moved at all. Rosita wiped the blood off her face and examined it on her fingers. Sasha carefully went toward her and held out her hand.

Only one thought could escape her lips, "We have each other."

She felt waves of sadness about to consume her if she spoke more. Rosita took Sasha's hand and hugged her tightly. And they wept: they wept for who and what they lost, for the remaining survivors, and for what the future held.

Glenn continued holding onto Maggie until he felt a pair of arms embracing him. He glanced to his sides and thought for a moment it was Maggie's spirit comforting him. But it was only Sasha and Rosita who was beside him. He did not push them away and allowed them to grieve with him.

It was a moment that required minimal speech. Carl stood up and tugged at his dad to do the same. They walked over to Daryl and mourned once more for their brother. They would cry to their grave over what had happened.

One of the first indications of what this new world would be like was repeated in Rick's head as he envisioned what life could have been like.

Everyone eats dinner in Alexandria around a large table. Maggie and Glenn dote on their son as Daryl and Carol flirt with each other. Rick is the happiest he has been in a while as he watches everything unfold. Rick allows himself to be grateful.

But the day has come when he won't be. When he will never be. When _they_ will never be.

Rick's thoughts were interrupted when out of the corner of his eye he saw Glenn lift up Maggie's body. Rosita, Sasha, Michonne, Carl, and Rick offered to help him, but Glenn firmly denied them.

"She was our family, too," Rick pointed out.

"Just let me... do this..." Glenn replied, already walking off. He started the long trek back to Alexandria with his wife's bloody and damaged body, inverting the famous sculpture of La Pieta.

Rick and Michonne held Daryl's body as they followed Glenn down the beaten path. Glenn led this funeral procession back home; back to an uncertain destination with only one notion in his mind: vengeance.

"I care more about her than I do about me"

~Glenn Rhee

The other woman who was next to Daryl in the lineup continued to stare at the ground as tears rolled down her cheeks. A pair of boots come into her line of sight, causing her body to be racked with uncontrollable sobs.

"What's wrong now, honey? You're too pretty to be crying like that," Negan mocked. "It looks like you've got a little stain on your face. Actually, it's a big stain," he snickered.

Before he could continue on his taunts, something else called his attention away from Rosita. The tortured cries of a broken man.

Negan gave Glenn a look of pity as he crouched down beside him with Glenn returning a look of pure hate. "You shouldn't be mad at me. I don't think ya would've wanted to see her as one of those _things_ , now would ya?"

Glenn broke his staredown with the sociopath, choosing instead to get Dwight off of him. "Don't even think about it," Dwight muttered as he pressed Glenn back down to the ground.

"I'm going to kill you," a deep voice spoke.

Negan grinned at this, clearly amused by this defiance. He already knew who the voice belonged to.

"Not today. Not tomorrow. But I will kill you," Rick seethed as Negan slowly approached him. "With what? Dwight's crossbow?" Negan gave his signature smirk at the disobedient "leader" who was ready to lunge at him. Preventing this, he roughly yanked Rick up and dragged him to the center, facing the lineup.

"I did warn you all," Negan gestured at Carl while making eye contact with Dwight. The burnt man grimaced at this, but followed orders. He grabbed the teenager by the arm and threw him beside his father. With no time to process what was happening, Negan already had a blade circling Carl's eye.

"He moved," Negan motioned to an appalled Glenn.

This immediately caused a stir from the remaining members; the yelling and crying started up again. Carl wiggled frantically in Negan's grasp, seeking to get away from this monster before he completed his dark intention.

"Don't do this! Kill me! Kill me instead! Please! Kill me!" Rick begged, hysteria evident in his tone.

"Dad," Carl responded, keeping his voice calm. "No. I'd rather be blind than have you die."

"No! I'm the one who disobeyed! Don't kill him! Let me die!" Glenn screamed and did not stop. His thoughts raced violently in his head, but none were clear enough to understand. His incoherent voice drowned out any idea.

Negan scoffed at this pathetic display in front of him. Nevertheless, he released Carl, who then huddled close to his dad.

"It's a good thing the man moved when his girl was dying instead of when Lucille came to feed," Negan joked. But his mood abruptly turned threatening. "Let this be known. If any of you defy me again, this will all seem like preschool," he eyed Rick at the last half.

Rick nodded his head furiously while sweat, tears, and mucus covered his face. "We work for you now."

"Okay, boys. Looks like we're through here. It's already dawn and I am exhausted! I cannot wait to get back to my warm bed!" Negan signaled for his men to pack up. Rick remained in the same spot, staring blankly ahead of him. One of the Saviors went to Daryl's body and snapped a Polaroid of what remained.

Negan climbed into his truck and adjusted the rearview mirror to see the group. He had never seen such devastation since... since this whole world ended. The truck is started and Negan drove off without smiling or laughing for once.

Finally able to move without fear of repercussion, Glenn dropped at his wife's side, clutching her damaged body. His sniffles turn into loud wails as this whole night replayed in his mind. He did not care about how noisy he was. He wanted the world to know what it had done to him.

Sasha rubbed her eyes free of tears and pushed herself to her feet. She was not going to let some hyper-masculine nutjob break her. She was going to fight... for Daryl... for Maggie. Alongside Abraham and the rest of her family, they would end Negan. She promised that to herself. She noted how she was the only one on her feet. Eugene covered his face with his hands. Aaron stared at his knees. Michonne had a hand covering her mouth. Rick and Carl had not moved at all. Rosita wiped the blood off her face and examined it on her fingers. Sasha carefully went toward her and held out her hand.

Only one thought could escape her lips, "We have each other."

She felt waves of sadness about to consume her if she spoke more. Rosita took Sasha's hand and hugged her tightly. And they wept: they wept for who and what they lost, for the remaining survivors, and for what the future held.

Glenn continued holding onto Maggie until he felt a pair of arms embracing him. He glanced to his sides and thought for a moment it was Maggie's spirit comforting him. But it was only Sasha and Rosita who was beside him. He did not push them away and allowed them to grieve with him.

It was a moment that required minimal speech. Carl stood up and tugged at his dad to do the same. They walked over to Daryl and mourned once more for their brother. They would cry to their grave over what had happened.

One of the first indications of what this new world would be like was repeated in Rick's head as he envisioned what life could have been like.

Everyone eats dinner in Alexandria around a large table. Maggie and Glenn dote on their son as Daryl and Carol flirt with each other. Rick is the happiest he has been in a while as he watches everything unfold. Rick allows himself to be grateful.

But the day has come when he won't be. When he will never be. When _they_ will never be.

Rick's thoughts were interrupted when out of the corner of his eye he saw Glenn lift up Maggie's body. Rosita, Sasha, Michonne, Carl, and Rick offered to help him, but Glenn firmly denied them.

"She was our family, too," Rick pointed out.

"Just let me... do this..." Glenn replied, already walking off. He started the long trek back to Alexandria with his wife's bloody and damaged body, inverting the famous sculpture of La Pieta.

Rick and Michonne held Daryl's body as they followed Glenn down the beaten path. Glenn led this funeral procession back home; back to an uncertain destination with only one notion in his mind: vengeance.


	3. 셋 What Comes After Part 2

"Do you know what he did to her?"

~Glenn Rhee

After seeing the fantasyland "The Kingdom," Carol Peletier rode back to the walls of Alexandria alone. King Ezekiel had been kind enough to let her _borrow_ a horse, saying "She needed it more than he did." But it was clear it still belonged to him if he were to somehow need it again.

Carol tried not to feel surprised that Morgan had decided to stay behind; she had expected it, after all. Morgan had no connection to The Kingdom. Sure, he was training that kid, but it wasn't like how it was at Alexandria.

Alexandria.

The place everyone else had welcomed with open arms she had vehemently pushed away. She had tried to assimilate into this way of life, but the two identities within her wouldn't let her. Not completely at least.

The fearless and merciless Carol couldn't drop her guard low enough to allow this, thus bringing out the timid and complacent Carol.

The two self-constructed personas pulled her in opposite directions, and Carol's anxieties grew as she wondered which one would surface once she reached Alexandria's walls.

Then why the hell did she want to go back?

Her friends and family were back there, waiting for her. Searching for her even. She knew how they worked and the guilt she felt from that was suffocating. Whatever she had felt from her murders and countless killings held no measure to the weight placed on her from running away like a coward.

Damn Alexandria for making her soft. For making her weak.

For making her like the abused housewife known as Carol Peletier.

The metal walls came into her view and the uncertainty of what was waiting for her overwhelmed her. She wasn't sure how or why she felt this foreboding sensation, but it made her more anxious than what she already was.

She searched the top of the walls for the figures of Abraham or Sasha, but they were nowhere to be found. That was very odd. They were usually on patrol at this hour.

As she noticed their absence, a line of slow-moving people approached the walls. Her heart leapt as she recognized who they were. Her nerves and heart controlled her emotional state instead of her brain at that moment; she was oblivious to the somber and sorrowful mood the group was in. She wanted to let them know she was alive and okay, that they shouldn't worry. They could stop searching for her.

She commanded the horse to gallop towards the group; the latter too entranced to hear the horse's trots come up alongside them.

"Rick," was all Carol managed to say before her smile faded.

Rick's bloodshot eyes met her own weary ones. He along with Michonne were carrying something- no, _someone_. The mangled nature of the bundle prevented her from identifying the body.

Carol's stomach lurched inside her. Who was it?

She looked around the members and saw their tear-stained and pale faces watched her gravely.

She glanced at the other member who was carrying someone.

Glenn. He stared back at her darkly, something she would have never imagined him capable of.

"C-Carol," Rick addressed her. "He... They..." Rick babbled on before stopping.

Carol slid off the horse to get a closer look at the bodies. The one Glenn carried had a wedding ring on its finger...

She gasped loudly, finally aware of who it belonged to. The guilt spilled over into grief and she had to latch onto the horse to steady herself.

"N-No. No, How?! HOW?!" Carol wailed.

"She... collapsed and.." Michonne started to say before Carol interrupted.

"That doesn't explain it! That doesn't explain why her head is... Oh God!"

The composure the group had attained fell apart when they heard her yell this.

"Daryl- Where's Daryl?" Carol asked, afraid of the answer.

Rick and Michonne only turned their backs to Carol, as if to hide their answer.

The edge of sanity she had been teetering over had finally claimed her into its abyss. The last remaining connection to her logic, her hope, her will to live had been severed and it was all her fault.

As if she had been the one to be hit with the bat, she fell to her knees and howled like a dying animal.

All the commotion outside brought the citizens to the gate in concern and wonder.

"Rick! Where in the hell have you-" Abraham shouted but stopped once he saw the display in front of him.

Seeing your friends holding the deceased bodies of their loved ones would cause any human to grow silent.

Glenn, who had enough of all of these blockades keeping him from reaching the church, passed Abraham without so much as a second glance. Abraham could only sadly turn his head and let his eyes follow his friend.

Sasha went to Abraham and took him by his hand. They looked into each other's eyes and share an intimate moment despite all of this. They peered into each's other souls without any words being exchanged between them. But that was okay; that was enough for them.

Rosita and Eugene came up behind Sasha, disrupting the moment. Sasha knew they needed comfort as well, so she walked off towards her house.

The rest eventually headed into Alexandria, ignoring the shocked and saddened citizens who wanted answers.

Rick, Michonne, and Carl went in the direction of Glenn. Despite what Glenn said, they were all going to grieve as a family. Even though they were exhausted and wanted nothing more than to sleep, they all secretly knew they could rest later. When the burials were completed.

Carol remained sobbing outside of the refuge; her suffering too great to do anything else but cry.

No one was going to come to her. No one was going to console her from this.

The one person who could have was dead because of her selfishness.

Whoever had done this was not the only one with blood on their hands. Carol's palms were stained with the blood of a pregnant woman and her best friend.

And even if they wanted to admit it or not, the ones who had experienced the horror that night believed the same.


	4. 넷 When It All Falls Down

"You don't need a picture of me. You never will again."

~Maggie Greene

Contrary to popular belief, Dwight was most certainly not "cool" with the events that transpired last night. He sat in the corridor, smoking a cigarette, trying to erase those images from his mind. It didn't make sense; he had seen many men meet that gruesome fate before. Why was he so bothered now?

Because that was precisely the issue: _men._

Sure, the lady was already dead, but when the bat met her head all he could see was Sherry on the other end of it.

He closed his eyes when her name crossed his mind. He had not repeated that name in so long... That was another thing he had tried to forget.

But Negan had made sure he would never forget. When they arrived back to their sanctuary this morning, Negan offered Dwight a night with her for his teamwork. Dwight politely refused, but the message of his offer was clear: She belongs to me now and you will always be aware of that.

This didn't help with the fact he had just killed an old partner of his today. Granted, he was a traitor and runaway. Dwight considered it to be a mercy killing for the man; it would have been much worse if Negan were to find him.

He leaned his head back against the wall, his head pounding from all of these thoughts. He started to readjust his vest when his hand froze midway.

This was the vest he had taken from Daryl.

Nausea filled his insides as a new flood of memories poured into his mind.

 _"We're sorry," Sherry had said when they first encountered Daryl in the woods._

 _"You're gonna be," Daryl grimly replied._

Before Dwight could continue on torturing himself with his own mind, someone had come up beside him holding out a Polaroid picture.

He opened his eyes and to his surprise, it was Sherry standing there. Her eyes were watery with tears and her face contorted in anger.

"Negan didn't bother sparing me the details. He even had this photo to show off," she spat.

Dwight hesitantly took the polaroid from her and immediately dropped it from his grasp once he was what it was of. At that moment, Dwight wanted nothing more than to strip away his vest and go smash the crossbow. Everything was too much of a reminder of how badly he screwed up.

"When he said we were going to be sorry, I thought he meant something else," Sherry said quietly as she picked up the fallen photo.

Dwight looked down at her, feeling the urge to take her into his arms. But he quickly pushed down these thoughts.

"Maybe we were better off dead- maybe Daryl should have killed us..." Sherry said, staring back at her ex-husband.

"Sherry, don't-" Dwight started to say before she cut him off.

"No, I know what you're going to say. How I should be grateful for all _he's_ done for us. But what should I be grateful for? Losing you? Losing my identity? Getting a man who showed us more mercy than he ever did killed?"

Dwight remained silent as he listened to her. He wanted to tell her she was wrong, so very, very wrong. But he couldn't find the words to argue.

Sherry opened her mouth to say more, but the sound of approaching footsteps was heard. Sherry quickly exited the corridor, glancing one last time at Dwight.

"Now there's my right-hand man!" Negan grinned. "I've been dyin' to talk to you."

Dwight was led to Negan's bedroom for this little one-on-one.

"I know last night was a little _rough._ But nothing my loyal right-hand man couldn't handle right?" Negan keenly asked.

"No, sir," Dwight answered, keeping his voice neutral.

"Yeah, I know you've experienced muuuch worse. Now excuse my lack of manners, I completely forgot to ask how that burn was healing."

"It's healing all right. As much as it can."

"I didn't expect it to look this good. Ya know, that iron was pretty hot. Just like your wife. Or ex-wife I should say," Negan leered.

Dwight only tightened his mouth in response.

"I was thinking how it might have been a blessing that Daryl was the one honored enough to meet Lucille. He could have been a good right-hand man. He would have been a helluva lot better to look at, ya know without a giant burn across his face," Negan came in closer to Dwight's proximity.

"It almost hurt me to kill him. Looking back on it, I should have taken out that Asian. But Daryl was just too defiant and I didn't want to be racist."

Dwight remained silent, processing all of this.

"But what really hurt was hitting the woman. She reminded me of a lot of Sherry. But that also got me wondering how she would have reacted if Lucille was about to kiss you. Women are insanely jealous. I bet," Negan got inches away from Dwight as he said this. "She would have jumped in front of you and taken the hit. She already sacrificed herself to spare your life before. Too bad she couldn't spare your face," Negan laughed loudly.

Dwight gulped, registering what Negan said as truth. Sherry would have jumped in to save his life. Dwight cursed himself, knowing that he would have been too cowardly to do the same for her. Would the man he had restrained have done the same for his wife? Something told Dwight he would have and more.

"Well, it seems this chat must come to a close. We gotta check back on our friends in good ole Alexandria," Negan crossed over to the door. "Oh, nice vest by the way," Negan smirked sadistically before leaving.

Dwight blinked a few times before exiting, musing over how no matter what items he had collected of Daryl's he would never be a fraction of the man Daryl was. Negan was right _again_ about how Daryl could have easily replaced Dwight. Daryl stood up against Negan in the face of death, something Dwight couldn't do.

Contrary to popular belief, Dwight was most certainly not "cool" with the events that had transpired last night, last month, and the last few minutes. He absolutely hated when Negan was right and he often was. No, Dwight was not cool with this life; he was livid.

* * *

In Alexandria, a man was sprawled across his bed covered in dirt and dried blood. He dreamt of his wife; that she was lying next to him. He reached his hand out to touch her only to find emptiness. He was confused by this, but he has no time to ponder about it as he is woken up by the sound of truck and vehicles pulling into the city.

He sat up and looked out the window to see what was going on; a sudden rage filled him as he realized who was here.

He glanced down at his clothes and decided against changing them. Let Negan see him like this. Let him wonder why he was still covered in his wife's blood. Let him know just the type of man he could be.

Glenn stood up next to the bedside and reached deep into his pocket, pulling out his watch. He studied it, examining all the features and functions of such a beautiful heirloom. However, the noises outside broke him from his thoughts.

He angrily placed the watch on the counter beside Maggie's ring. A ring he had found for her and one she would never wear again. The time on the watch ticked on for him, but it would never tick for her either. Negan had made sure of that.

As he walked out to 'greet' their visitors, the time on the watch suddenly stopped. 


	5. 다섯 After The Fall

"I know it's wrong, but I'd trade any number of people for one of ours any day."

~Glenn Rhee

"Now don't make me ask again," Negan warned Spencer. The clueless man wasn't supposed to open the gates to Alexandria. Spencer reluctantly let Negan and his men into their home, wondering who this man was and what the hell he was doing here.

Before things could escalate, Rick arrived at the tense scene. "What are you doing here?" He asked breathlessly, his eyes glued to what Negan held in his hand; Lucille.

"What does it look like I'm here for, Rick? I'm here for half of your shit!" Negan pointed the bat at Rick, who unwillingly flinched.

This did not go unnoticed by Negan, so he commanded him to hold it. Rick grudgingly took ahold of it; not wanting to see the dried blood and pieces of flesh clinging to it.

"We can gather the supplies for you," Rick told him, desperately wanting Negan to pack up and go.

"I'll be the one to decide that," Negan fired back, looking around at the scenery. "This sure is a nice place ya got here." Rosita rolled her eyes in annoyance, something that Negan did not appreciate. He stood in front of her, his chest nearly touching hers. She did not turn her face up towards him; she refused to meet his lecherous look. Unable to take this invasion of space any longer, Rosita walked off back to Spencer. Negan chuckled at this, but Rick was far from amused.

"Alright, start searching the house for whatever you want!" One of Negan's lieutenants yelled. "Nothing is off limits!" The Saviors perked up upon hearing this and immediately started to raid the houses.

Rick could only watch helplessly as his people's items were forcefully taken from them. Negan grinned in amusement at the scene in front of him, enjoying how Rick was under his thumb.

Dwight, wanting to have some fun of his own, turned his attention to Rosita and Spencer. "Roooosiiita," he called out to her. She narrowed his eyes at him in disgust. "I need you all to do me a favor," he snatched her hat. "I want Daryl's bike and you know where it's at."

Rosita looked as if she wanted to murder Dwight on the spot and oh, how badly did she want to. "Whatever," she responded before climbing into the car with a puzzled Spencer.

"Before you go, I'm gonna need your guns," Dwight held out his hand

"How do you expect us to get the bike then?" Rosita shot back.

"I'm sure you can find a way..." He implied that if they wanted to live they better find a way to retrieve the motorcycle. Rosita practically shoved the guns in Dwight's burnt face before accelerating off.

"We found this," a Savior approached Negan with a camcorder.

"Now what do we have here?" Negan turned on the camcorder and a fully bearded Rick came onto the screen, causing Negan to laugh. "Talk about an extreme makeover!" Negan switched on the recording button and filmed the vastly different Rick in front of him.

"Say hi to the camera!" Negan zoomed in and out on him.

Once Negan got bored of that, he started viewing the other videos. "Oh, memories," he pointed at the screen, which showed Daryl being interviewed. Rick swallowed his grief that threatened to spill over as he saw his brother. Negan skipped to the next video and whistled, "I would have asked her to be my wife in an instant if she hadn't died. She would have made an excellent addition to my home." He flipped the screen over to show a long-haired Maggie talking about her skills. Rick gripped Lucille tightly, seething once again.

"Did you come to pay your respects?" a man behind Negan asked. Negan quickly turned around startled.

"Holy shit, you are creepy as hell! Scaring me with that freaky smile," Negan said to a slightly insulted Gabriel. The priest led the way to the graveyard, with Negan and Rick following behind him.

They looked silently at the graves before Negan spoke up: "How is her husband doing? I wouldn't expect too well." Something in his word choice bothered Rick, but he couldn't indicate what. Gabriel only looked at Rick worriedly and Rick did the same. The truth is they didn't know; Glenn had shut himself up in his house. "I'd like to see him; where is he?" Negan continued.

"I'm right here," an angry voice responded behind the three of them.

"Ah, the man of the hour!" Negan roughly grabbed Lucille from Rick's hand and placed it on Glenn's shoulder, causing him to twist his head to avoid the barbed wire. Rick and Gabriel could only hold their breath as they watched anxiously.

"I was just paying my respects to your lovely wife," Negan pressed the bat down on Glenn's shoulder. Glenn visibly fumed as Negan's insensitivity continued. "I can see you haven't changed your clothes. No wonder you smell."

In just a swift move of the arm, Glenn had a gun aimed straight at Negan's mouth. "I can see you haven't stopped running that mouth of yours. No wonder so much shit is being spewed out."

"Glenn! Put the gun down!" Rick couldn't believe what he was witnessing. Glenn knew what this man was capable of and he still does this?

Negan was very surprised by this, but laughed it off. "Did you just threaten me, boy?"

"Glenn, please. Put it down," Rick begged. He wouldn't be able to see another person have their brains smashed, not again, not ever.

"Rick, don't interrupt. We are having a conversation," Negan glared at him, then switched over to Glenn. "I doubt you even have the balls to pull the trigger."

Glenn slowly lowered the gun, but eyed Negan as he did it. Negan smirked, "I knew it. The closest thing you'll ever get to having some is with Lucille." Negan raised the bat, causing Rick and Gabriel to shout and plead. Glenn firmly held his ground, bracing for the impact. But at the same moment, a commotion was heard.

The situation was diffused as Negan, Gabriel, and Rick decided to figure out what was happening, leaving Glenn behind with Maggie's grave.

Glenn fell to his knees beside it, stroking the dirt. At this point, he had a death wish. He didn't care if Negan killed him, but he was going to go out as a martyr. He was going to prove to him that he wasn't scared of whatever punishment Negan dealt out.

The three of them entered the street to find one of the Saviors being threatened by Carl. The Savior was harassing Enid until Carl came up to put a stop to it.

"You all better leave. Before you see how dangerous we really are," Carl waved the gun at the Savior. Rick wanted to cry upon seeing what was happening.

"Careful, kid, or you might shoot your eye out," Negan leered. This struck Carl, who sighed before putting away the gun.

"It seems like your people don't know how to handle guns. They're too trigger happy and irresponsible," Negan addressed Rick. "I can't allow this, Rick. I'm sure you'll understand when I say I'm taking all your guns as a precaution." Rick nodded grimly; Carl couldn't even look at his dad at that moment.

"Show me where all your guns and _my_ guns are," Negan demanded. Across the street, Carol was crying as some Saviors took her mattress. Rick noticed this as did Gabriel. They looked to each other in understanding what they were going to do. "I'll lead the way," Gabriel smiled as Rick went to Carol.

"Carol, I'm sorry. But I'm not in charge anymore. You have to do what Negan says," Rick tried consoling her.

"It's not only that. It's just... everything we've worked for... It's all gone because of me."

"Carol, don't say that. It's not your fault."

"Oh, stop it, Rick. I can see it in everyone's eyes how they feel. They blame me. I blame me."

"I was the leader. I'm the one who failed you all. I thought we could take him on... but I was wrong. I put us in this situation."

"Rick, you still are our leader."

"No, not anymore. This is our life now; we work for him."

"Then I don't want this life," Carol's eyes welled up as did Rick's.

"Carol..." Rick started to say before she stopped him.

"Go to him, he probably wants to know where you're at." Rick slowly walked away, glancing at Carol as he left. Her appearance looked ragged and tired, but in spite of this, she smiled at him.

In the armory, Abraham was raging as Negan and his men confiscated all the guns. He saw Rick walking over and came towards him before he reached the armory.

"Rick, what in tarnation's is going on?! He just waltzes here, insults Olivia and I's appearance, and starts taking things! Why are you allowing this?!"

"Because he's in charge now. We do what he says," Rick wearily explained.

Abraham huffed. "I only take your orders. Not this scumbag's."

"Abraham, you weren't there when he killed... when he killed them. Please, just follow his orders. He can still hurt people. He almost hurt Glenn earlier."

"Alright, but I don't know how much more I can keep silent. It's a good thing Sasha is away at Hilltop; I don't think she would let this asshole walk all over her," and with that Abraham left Rick to deal with the Saviors.

* * *

After Rick endured more mockery from Negan, he decided to find Glenn and talk to him about his behavior. Negan was still collecting the guns and didn't need Rick at the moment. Rick searched for Glenn at his house, but he was nowhere to be seen. He thought he might still be at the church and he turned out to be right. Glenn was sitting at the closest pew to the front with his head down. Rick thought was praying until he got closer and saw he was unloading and reloading his gun.

"You're going to need to hand that over," Rick ordered.

"If Negan wants it, he can come get it himself."

"Glenn!" Rick said sharply. "I get that you're angry, I get it. But he nearly killed you. If you act out again, he will kill you. Or someone else."

Glenn looked up at him sternly. "The Rick Grimes I followed would have never bent over backwards to serve Negan. He would have put a bullet through his brain the minute he stepped foot in Alexandria." Rick only listened, grief and guilt overwhelming him. "The Rick Grimes Daryl and... and Maggie followed and respected would have avenged them by now," hot tears spilled down Glenn's cheeks. "Why is the Rick Grimes that's standing in front of me allowing this _murderer_ to control our lives?"

"Cause I want _you_ to live, Glenn," Rick's voice was barely above a whisper. "Maggie would want you to live."

Glenn let out a shaky breath at this. "Maggie and Daryl would want us to live. But not like this."

"We don't have the numbers to..."

"Screw your numbers. It wasn't like that at Woodbury," Glenn pointed out. Rick lowered his head at this.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I couldn't help but overhear," Gabriel said, stepping out of the shadows. "Rick, we can... we will overcome this. It isn't entirely hopeless."

"There's no way out," Rick responded sadly.

"There's always a way," Gabriel approached them, smiling. "I believe in us. I believe in Rick Grimes."

Glenn stood up and finally gave Rick the gun. "Here." Rick looked in disbelief at Glenn as he walked out of the pew.

"Glenn, I need to ask you something. Do you blame me for what happened?" Rick asked, already expecting the answer to be a sound "yes."

"No. I'm glad I rescued that idiot from the tank that day in Atlanta," Glenn smiled a little causing Rick to break down. Gabriel smiled sadly at this, too before Glenn walked out of the church. Rick and Gabriel followed shortly after.

Negan was packing up the last of their items when Rosita and Spencer finally returned. Dwight grinned at his new motorcycle and took it from Spencer. "You find anything else?" Dwight asked.

"Just your dead friends," Rosita replied nonchalantly, crossing her arms. Dwight pursed his mouth into a tight smile at this. Rosita ignored this and went to Glenn's side. Rick, who Negan had forced to hold Lucille again, thanked Negan to get him to leave.

Negan nodded and turned his attention to Glenn. Rick had a firm grip on Lucille, ready to strike Negan if he hurt Glenn.

"And here I thought you were a threat. You have caused me some trouble, but I've found it quite amusing. You, trying to take me on," He pointed his finger in Glenn's face. "That's almost as funny as you getting a wife in the first place!" Glenn took a deep breath in, trying to control his anger.

"I should kill you. But your attempts to be a man, to be on my level, were just too entertaining. Plus half of you would be dead already for giving me lip. I'm a nice guy, I don't want to keep killin' you all," Negan's eyes lit up as a thought crossed his mind. "Ya see, Rick _was_ a man. But now he's my bitch," He went over to Rick and patted him on the shoulder. "Hell, all of you are!" Negan shouted gleefully.

Michonne, who was on a hunting trip, strolled into Alexandria with a rifle and a deer. "Ooo! Dinner!" Negan rubbed his hands together. Michonne scowled at him as she laid the deer at his feet. Negan cleared his throat, "You're forgetting something, the rifle." Michonne unstrapped the rifle from her and put it down beside the deer. She hated being in this position, practically bowing to a man who had killed her family. She wasn't going to go down so easily; she was going to defy him each chance she got even if it were in subtle ways.

Negan smugly grinned as he started to head off towards his truck until he said: "Oh, I almost forgot something." He went to Rick and snatched Lucille from his hand. "I just slipped my dick down your throat and you thanked me for it," He leaned into Rick, his tone menacing.

Rosita, Glenn, and Michonne could only glower at the man who had not only destroyed their lives, but used every chance he got to insult, mock, and break down them and their leader. Rick closed his eyes as he took the jab, knowing he could not respond accordingly.

The gate was shut as Negan finally left the city, letting the residents give a sigh of relief. However, the peace did not last long since Spencer confronted the real villain in his eyes, Rick.

"We should have made a deal with them when we could've. Oh, yeah. We're sooo lucky! You've led us to the promised land, isn't that right, Rick? It's over; this is our life now. Maybe if you would have thought this through, Daryl and Maggie would still be with us!" Spencer snapped.

Rick opened his mouth with a retort, but Glenn jumped in front of him, furious. "When I hit your brother that time, will be nothing compared to your broken jaw and smashed in teeth if you ever say her name _again_ ," Glenn's entire face turned dark. Spencer swallowed as he saw this new side of Glenn. Everyone there gaped in shock, even Rick who had witnessed Glenn's threats earlier. Glenn turned on his heel and went off to his house.

Later in the day, Rick was setting up blankets over where his bed used to be when Michonne walked in. "I'm concerned about Glenn."

Rick looked up for a moment, but went back to his work. "He's just struggling to accept it. But he's going to have to."

Michonne shook her head, "How do we accept this? We have never simply _accepted_ things before; it's why we have survived as long we have."

Rick sighed, "We all have to accept this in order to make it work. In order to survive. This is how we live now."

"I'll try," was all she said before she left the room.

She went back to her "hunting spot" when she noticed smoke in the distance. Curious, she went to investigate and to her horror, she wished she hadn't. All of their mattresses were in a pile, smoldering. She started shaking with rage, but it quickly turned to tears. No, she was never going to accept this.

In the night, Rosita made her way towards Eugene's house with a shell casing she found in the woods whilst searching for Daryl's bike. As she made her way over there, she got the feeling someone was following her. "Who's there?" She turned around, ready to fight.

"It's just me," Glenn said, carrying something behind him. But it was too dark to see what it was.

"Glenn? Why are you following me?" Rosita asked, slightly weirded out.

"I wasn't. Well, I didn't mean to. I was walking back to my house after picking up something when I saw you."

"Oh, I was going over to Eugene's," a new emotion overtook her. Determination to bring down Negan's reign. "I'm going to have him make me a bullet."

Glenn was surprised by this grit in her, but also liked that he wasn't the only one feeling this way. "For what?" He already knew what she meant, but he wanted to hear her say it.

"All it takes is one bullet. One bullet to end this," Her eyes seemed to glow with rage. "Why is everyone so scared of him? Yeah, I know what he did was _terrifying._ But without that bat, he's-"

"He's just a man. That's what he's been from the start. Nothing more than an ordinary man," Glenn finished for her. Rosita nodded in agreement.

"Or it could just take..." Glenn revealed what he had been hiding. He threw it down between them; it made a loud clang as it hit the pavement. "One bat." 


	6. 여섯 This is the Future

"I'm hardly the woman I was a year ago."

~Carol Peletier

The radio was blasting in Glenn's garage as he worked. The former delivery boy barely listened to the lyrics as he tirelessly crafted his new weapon. One part he did hear that caught his attention was when the female sang the words: "We are warriors. You and I. Our legacy would never die." He continued on with his work, carefully wrapping his aluminum bat with barbed wire.

Meanwhile, Carol was in her house furiously writing away at her desk. Tears fell from her face, staining the paper. She let out a shaky breath, wanting to be strong as she did this.

Rick rocked Judith back and forth in his arms; the one thing retained his sanity in this mad world. Carl was in the other room, throwing darts, but missing the target. He was getting more and more frustrated each time he missed. Michonne was with Aaron visiting the graves; they placed flowers around them so they wouldn't look barren. Michonne almost chuckled at the thought of seeing Daryl's reaction to the flowers surrounding his grave.

Abraham was manning the gate when he saw Sasha and Jesus approach Alexandria. An irritated scowl adorned both their faces.

"How'd it go?" Abraham called out. Sasha only shook her head in response, "About as good as I look. Gregory sent me back after I told him we didn't kill all the Saviors." Her voice hardened. "How we didn't kill Negan."

"Well, you can't win 'em all. Why's he here then?" He gestured to Jesus.

"I couldn't let the lady walk back by herself," He raised his eyebrows with a smug grin, causing Sasha to roll her eyes playfully.

"Abraham, can you give me a cigar?" Sasha covered the top of her forehead as she looked up at him.

"Since when did you start smoking?" He reached into his pocket, digging for one.

"Since after I met that coward of a leader Gregory," She caught it as he threw it down to her as well as with the lighter.

"Thanks," she stuck it in her mouth, walking off with Jesus towards Rick's house.

"Sasha, we'll get him. That asshole's days are numbered." Abraham reassured her. Sasha nodded her head firmly as she lit the cigar.

At Rick's house, Sasha and Jesus told him how they were unable to form another alliance with the Hilltop colony.

"He thinks we'll get everyone killed," Sasha said. "He wants to claim plausible deniability if the Saviors somehow find out we did work with them to take out Negan."

"That's understandable," Rick put his hands on his sides. "I don't know what other cards there are to play now. Gregory was our final hope."

"No, he's not," Jesus spoke up. "Gregory... Gregory can barely lead Hilltop! I don't even know how he was chosen to be the leader!"

"What are you tryin' to say, Jesus?" Rick asked.

"I'm trying to say Hilltop needs a new leader," He looked over brightly at Sasha.

"Me?" Sasha was surprised.

"Yes, you," Jesus affirmed. "I had been thinking about how Hilltop needed a change in leadership since you all visited. I was thinking Maggie could have done it..." He paused. "But when I watched you try to negotiate with Gregory, I knew."

Sasha laughed at this absurd thought. "I don't know, Jesus. I like Alexandria. A lot. I don't want to leave it. Especially right now."

"Sasha, you want to see the end of Negan so badly. You told me about how you felt as we walked back. This is how we do it," Jesus stated.

"Even if she does want to do this, how will we get Gregory to step down? How will our numbers stand with the Saviors?" Rick questioned, unconvinced.

Before Jesus could answer, Glenn walked into the room. Glenn's eyes immediately landed on Jesus and wrath swelled up inside of him. He was the catalyst for all of this, Glenn thought. Something must have told Jesus how Glenn was feeling because he went up to him and gently told him: "I'm so sorry, Glenn. If you all wouldn't have met me, they might still be here. I pulled you all into this mess."

Glenn's anger slowly dissipated as he heard this. "Would you like to see the graves?"

Glenn led the way to the burial site and to everyone's surprise they saw the graves decorated with blue and green flowers.

Jesus went up to the graves and studied the flowers. "Whoever put these here did an excellent job. The blue signified strength and calming. The green nurtures a release meant for the deceased," He smiled at them.

Tears stung Sasha, Rick and Glenn's eyes as they heard this. Glenn went up to Jesus and picked up one of the green flowers off Maggie's grave and choked: "Her last name was Greene." He laughed, "It's a stupid connection but..."

Jesus interrupted, "No, it's not." They all looked at the graves in silence, grieving at what Negan had taken away from them.

They all walked Jesus back to the gate; Rick telling him he was always welcomed here.

"I hope you'll consider it, Sasha," Jesus told her.

"I will," Sasha answered, skeptically.

With that, Jesus headed back on the road to Hilltop.

Glenn started off towards his house, and Rick turned to Sasha.

"Is this something you want to do, Sasha?"

"I don't know. But if it means that Negan will be killed, I would do anything."

Rick shook his head disapprovingly. "I can't have that. I can't risk failure and seeing you all get killed."

"Why is it that everyone wants to fight back except you?" Sasha couldn't keep her feelings down any longer. "You of all people should be advocating for this. He killed _your_ people."

Rick ignored her and kept walking. Sasha chased after him, trying to get him to see reason. But Rick noticed something odd as he tried to get away from her. Carol's front door was wide open and a gust of wind that had just blown through shut it.

The sound of a swaying rope was heard behind them amongst a cluster of trees.

Rick and Sasha hesitantly turned around to the horror that was Carol's body hanging from the tree.

Sasha cried out as Rick ran to cut her body from the tree. He knew that she was already dead based off the discolor in her face and the lack of movement from her chest. It was only a matter of time before she turned into a walker. But he couldn't bring himself to stick the blade in her head.

He gripped it with all his might and lifted the knife steadily above her head, but someone beat him to it with the wave of an ax.

Rick jolted as the blood sprayed onto him and he looked up to see an enraged Glenn. He was breathing in and out rapidly as he saw his friend's dead body on the ground. Her life went out like a candle's flame pinched by two fingers. It did not go out with even a whimper or the bang she rightfully deserved.

Rick was a little frightened by this display as was Sasha. A crowd had started to gather at the tree and their faces expressed the sorrow and despair Rick had initially felt. The little resolution they did have slowly faded from their eyes.

Glenn looked towards Rick as he said, "I came by earlier to say I had a plan." He looked up at the sky as tears rolled down his face. "That there could be a way to defeat him. But maybe you are right, there is no hope."

Carl came up beside his dad and wrapped an arm around him. "How many more people is he going to take away from us?" Carl knew that Negan wasn't directly responsible for Carol's death, but his presence had driven her over the edge.

Rick couldn't respond to his son's question as his grief clouded his mind. Glenn went over to her body and lifted her up. Rick snapped out of his trance for a bit and went over to help him. He didn't care what Glenn said; he was going to help.

Glenn didn't object to this and they both went over the church to bury her. The ones who knew her followed to say one last goodbye to Carol. The remaining crowd watched in depressing silence, accepting the fact that death was to be their constant companion from now on.

After they buried her, Rick went to her house to collect the mementos of his good friend. He was in too much shock to believe she was really gone. He expected her to be waiting for him at her house with a plate of cookies. The memory of this shook him to the core and his last wall finally collapsed. He cried out in anguish at how his life had unraveled so suddenly and quickly.

As he wept, he found a note on her desk. He read it, over and over, running his fingers over the pen marks. These were the final words of Carol, his beloved friend, and he wanted to lock them away in his heart and mind.

Glenn walked back to his house alone. The fall air was turning cooler, signaling winter would soon arrive. He thought of how he had rarely seen snow in Georgia and would finally experience all four seasons. Then he thought of how Maggie and their child would never see Alexandria in the winter. His child would never get to experience the snowflakes falling from the clouds or build a snowman with him. Carol and Daryl wouldn't get to see this either. They also had a future together; a relationship that brought out the best in each other.

This brought back Glenn's fury at everything Negan and his men had cut short. He almost gave up today and he cursed himself for that. He would not rest until Negan's corpse was laid out in front of him.

Sasha had another cigar in her mouth. She had stolen this one from Abraham, knowing he wouldn't give up his precious cigars. She was in her garage, sharpening her knife. The notion of taking leadership at Hilltop becoming more appealing.

Tonight would be a long night for Glenn. He had his radio to the maximum and got to work again. He had finished his first weapon, but a new one formed in his mind. It was a good thing he found a wooden bat. He pulled out some nails and started hammering away.

Enid silently snuck up behind Glenn since he was too focused on the task at hand. The man felt her behind him and quickly turned to face her. A look of surprise crossed his face seeing the teenage girl there.

"Enid, what are you doing here?" He asked, shutting off the radio.

"I want to talk," She answered, her face grim. "I've seen what you have been doing and I want in." 


	7. 일곱 Tortured Heart

"Who are those people to you?"

~Enid

The moon was shining bright overhead the Virginian sky. The crisp air blew gently; winter was rapidly approaching. No one was awake. Everyone wanted to sleep away the pain that was today.

Everyone except for Glenn and Enid.

Glenn stared at the young girl incredulously, startling at her words. He knew what she meant even though she didn't say it outright; he wasn't going to act like she was stupid.

"No," he responded sternly. "What I'm doing... what I plan to do, is for me only."

"Is it because you see me as a kid?" Her face contorted annoyed with this fact.

"It's because you are a kid. And there's nothing wrong with that. This world has already taken so much from you, Enid," he said gently.

"You're right. It took away Maggie. I looked up to her. We grew close; we had this bond like we were sisters," She proclaimed severely.

Glenn felt his vision blur with newly formed tears. He hadn't known Maggie and Enid had been so close. Of course, in reality, they hadn't been. Enid was a disturbed girl; most of the time she seemed stony and incapable of emotion. She didn't love Ron the way he loved her. She didn't love Carl the way he loved her. But she loved Maggie and Glenn. Since she had first spoken to them, she had hoped they would become a family together. Everything about them seemed so perfect and loving and warm and

 _Happy._

That was an emotion Enid hadn't experienced in a long time.

Now that Maggie was dead, Glenn was the only chance she had of recovering that happiness. Once Negan was killed, she could finally be apart of a family again.

"I want to help you avenge her, Glenn."

"You have a future ahead of you, Enid. With Carl. If you somehow get hurt or killed-" Glenn was interrupted by the teenager.

"That's every day of my life!" The teenager interrupted. "Of our lives. And what about your future? Negan robbed that from you, but we can reclaim it. Together."

Glenn was still unsure about this. Yes, he needed everyone's support to accomplish his vengeance, but he couldn't think of dragging along a 16-year-old into the mix. It seemed... wrong.

"We'll talk about this later." He paused. "I'm getting hungry from all of this work. You want something to eat?"

"Sure," Enid followed him into his house.

They went into the kitchen where Glenn was rummaging through his pantry.

"How do some cookies sound?"

"That's fine," Enid responded, sitting down on a chair. He plopped the box on the table between them and was about to sit down when Enid asked: "Hey, Glenn. Could I... have some hot cocoa?" She seemed a little embarrassed by this question.

"Uh, yeah. That actually sounds really good," His old persona reappeared for a brief moment; not the hardened one.

Enid stared at him sheepishly as he prepared it for them. She was waiting for him to make some jokes like he used to, but he was silent. She really missed that about him and cursed Negan for yet again taking away his optimism and cheerfulness.

He set two glasses down for them. They ate their cookies and drank their cocoa without glancing at each other; Enid too shy and Glenn too ponderous.

"I cut her hair before she left," Enid muttered.

Glenn looked up at her with surprise. "Oh. You did a good job, Enid."

"Thanks. She, uh, she came to me and said she didn't want anything getting in her way. That's why she had me cut it," she stared sadly at the cookies in front of her.

Glenn rubbed his bruised and weary hands over his eyes. "When I first met her, she had short hair. Then it grew out to be long and beautiful." The tears were starting to flow again. "She would have been such a good mom," he could barely get the last sentence out of his mouth.

Enid scurried out of her chair and wrapped her arms around Glenn. "Yes, and you would have been an amazing father."

They remained like that for a while; Glenn weeping and Enid comforting him.

Once he finished, he put the mugs in the sink and the cookies away in the pantry.

"Did you ever make a nursery?" Enid asked carefully, not wanting to upset him again.

"No, we were planning to..." He trailed off. "I forgot to close the garage," he suddenly remembered. "I'll be back," He wanted to temporarily get away from Enid, thinking she would ask more depressing questions.

Enid started to look around the house, eventually heading upstairs to the bedroom. She wanted to see if Maggie's clothes were still there. She didn't think Glenn would have gotten rid of them, but she wanted to be sure.

She opened the closet and saw that her clothes remained intact. Enid had always thought Maggie had such good style. She stared at them in longing and sadness, knowing they would never be worn again. She shut the closet door and went over to the bed. On the counter next to the bed, there was a pocket watch. She lifted it up, noticing the hands had stopped.

"Enid?" Glenn asked from the doorframe.

She quickly turned around, feeling slightly ashamed for being caught like this. "I'm sorry, I should go. Goodnight," she rushed over to exit, but Glenn caught her arm.

Heat gathered across Enid's cheeks as she looked up at him.

"I want you to help me."

"Really?"

"It's not my place to deny you this if Maggie thought of you as her family."

Enid smiled up at him. At last, Glenn saw what she saw; their future together. This was just the first step, but it would all fall into place.

"You should go home now. It's late," Glenn let go of her.

"Alright. By the way, the watch isn't working."

"I know," He responded tiredly as they walked towards the front door. Enid decided to drop the subject.

Before she headed into the autumn night, she turned and asked him, "Why two bats? You can't kill him with just one?"

"That night, he took away the two most important people from me," Glenn seethed. "He will experience two types of pain when I kill him."

"That's hardcore. I like it though," Enid smirked. "How are you going to carry them around though?"

Glenn thought about this for a moment. "I'm going to need a bag or backpack-Think you can help me?"

Enid couldn't have been more delighted to. As she ran off to her house, she couldn't stop thinking about her new life; her new _purpose._ Just a few months earlier, she had treated Glenn like a pest. Pulled a gun on him even. But now, they had developed a close relationship. No, she did not have a future with Carl. She could never love him the way he loved her. She had a future with Glenn. And come hell or high water, she would be with him.

* * *

Hey, readers! I would like to know what you all think of my story! So if you could please message me or comment, that would be great!

Thank you!


	8. 여덟 Final Hope

"I didn't think I could be strong."

~Carol Peletier

The days after returning from Alexandria were tense for the Saviors. Negan had not been acting like his usual, jerky, self. If the Saviors thought his past self was terrible, this "new" Negan was a tyrant. He lashed out more often at his men, threatening them with Lucille over the smallest things. He did not jokingly insult them; he outright terrorized them. No one knew why this dramatic shift had occurred.

No one that is except for Negan.

Negan could not stop thinking about what he encountered in Alexandria. More specifically, _who._

Yeah, it was fun to see Rick writhe under him. He found Carl's anger to be amusing. It was really entertaining to see the women trying to defy his authority. He found enjoyment in seeing Glenn trying to stand up to him.

 _For a while._

Somehow, his sadistic pleasure in their misery was slowly draining into a tedious monotony. He had not felt this way for so long, that he couldn't even describe it.

He knew that what he had done would break them, but to see them at this point gave him pause. He considered laying off a bit; he had made his point clear enough.

But there was always the chance that Rick's group would take his "mercy" for weakness, and he could simply not allow that.

He was also concerned that his followers would see this emotion and consider him to be a faulty leader. They would only listen and respect a brutal and strong leader; not one they would mistake for a pansy.

To reinforce this idea in their heads, his grip on them tightened. He became more ruthless, less jolly. He would not lose everything he worked so hard to build to some pathetic emotion. Fear was the _only_ way to rule.

Sherry was no exception to Negan's newfound brutality. He had been rougher with her, manhandling her even that he left bruises.

She thought she had been scared before, but she was terrified now.

She knew Dwight wanted to talk to her, but she couldn't risk Negan finding out. She had a feeling that if they were caught, they would end up on the wrong side of a barbed bat.

* * *

Several miles away in Alexandria, Rick and his closest friends were gathered in his house. He had called them all over to share the final words of Carol Peletier.

He cleared his throat before reading:

 _"Family and Friends,_

 _Or whoever finds this._

 _I don't even know how I survived this long... Every day I wake up and this thought crosses my mind. I was never strong. I think I was able to get by each day because I pretended to be strong. When Sophia died, I only pretended to be tough. When Lizzie, Micah, Beth, and Herschel died, I continued doing this._

 _Then Daryl and Maggie died. And I couldn't pretend anymore._

 _I couldn't bear the weight of knowing I got the man I loved, the man who retained my sanity and hope throughout everything, killed._

 _I couldn't look at Glenn without thinking his family was dead because I decided to be selfish. I had grown close to Maggie over all our tribulations. I considered her family._

 _But because my guilt prevailed over my logic, she is dead._

 _Dear, whoever is reading this, you probably don't even care about I'm saying. For all I know, Negan could be reading this. Or one of his men._

 _If you are Negan or one of his men, you can take this letter straight to hell._

 _If you are Rick or one of the Alexandrians, I am sorry for everything I have caused. But I want you to know, that you can defeat this. You have overcome so much. You must overcome this. Not for Daryl, Maggie, or me._

 _But for yourselves. For the ones who are truly strong._

 _You all are the last ones carrying the fire._

 _Rick, you were placed in a situation not many men want. That not many men can handle. But you have carried this group as much as you can. You have kept us alive._

 _You have to rebuild this world. I believe you will._

 _And when you do, don't forget to mention me._

 _Thank you. For everything._

 _~Your friend, no family_ ,

 _Carol_

 _P.S. I think there's a man you should meet. His name is King Ezekiel and he rules over The Kingdom. Morgan is there."_

"She also drew a map to the kingdom," Rick choked on his words.

By the time Rick's voice trailed off as he reached the end of the letter, everyone was mourning again. Rick was crying the hardest of them all. Carol's words had struck him with new waves of emotion and sorrow, but had also brought hope. He wanted to desperately hold onto her words of hope and make sure they would never be stolen from him.

"I'm going to find The Kingdom," Rick spoke up over everyone's sobs. "F-For Carol."

"Why would she want us to find it? Because Morgan's there?" Aaron asked, rubbing away tears from his eyes.

"Not only because of that, but she thought... he could help us overcome this," Rick responded.

Everyone looked at Rick, wondering if King Ezekiel would help them defeat Negan.

"Would that be enough people for you to declare war?" Glenn questioned sardonically.

Rick glanced at the man, not liking this new attitude. But he decided to not argue about and only responded with a "maybe."

"I don't know if this is the right time to say this, but I am strongly considering Jesus's offer," Sasha stepped forward. "And if King Ezekiel does help us, then I will become Hilltop's leader."

Abraham smiled reassuringly at her, knowing she would make an excellent leader.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. We first need to find The Kingdom and Morgan for that matter," Rick replied. "We don't know when Negan will come back. He's unpredictable, but I will say he won't be back for a few days. That gives us enough time to find The Kingdom. I don't want a whole search party in case he does show up, but I will need another person to come with me."

"I'll volunteer," Aaron said. "I know the area pretty well, so we might find it sooner."

"Okay," Rick nodded his head. "Michonne, Carl, and Glenn. You know what to do if Negan comes back." The three of them nodded their heads in understanding, they would have to comply with Negan's demands.

As everyone left, Glenn stayed behind.

"Glenn? Is something wrong?" Rick realized after he asked this, just how many answers Glenn could give in response.

Thankfully, Glenn did not answer this. "Yeah, I just needed someone to talk to. After everything that's happened."

"I'm always here for you. For anyone that wants to talk. Maybe if Carol would have talked to me... I could- I could've..." Rick started to fall apart again.

"It's not about that," Glenn laid a hand on his back. "It's just that last night I had a dream. About Maggie. I was the one who died that night. She had to watch as Negan killed me. I told her... that I would find her," his voice quavered. "I don't even know what that means. But I somehow wish things would have turned out that way because her and Daryl and Carol would still be here."

"No, Glenn. You're here now and I'm glad you are." Rick's eyes were beginning to sting again.

Glenn put his face in his hands. "How did this all go so wrong? It wasn't supposed to be this way."

Rick couldn't find an answer to that because there wasn't one. But Rick knew he would do everything in his power to set things right. He would declare war on Negan and he would win. Not for Daryl, Carol, or Maggie. But for their own freedom like Carol said. For the first time since everything had fallen apart, Rick started to find his strength.

"I think it means... no matter what world or universe you're in, you'll find each other," Rick finally spoke up to his grief-stricken friend.

* * *

A trail of stabbed walkers followed Enid's path as she journeyed out on a run. She was an expert on sneaking out of Alexandria, coming in and out of with ease. She really didn't want to leave at a time like this when the Saviors could be just outside the walls. However, she had a job to do. Glenn had entrusted her to find a backpack and she was not going to let him down.

She knew that this run might take a while since she was on foot. She had come prepared with several blades, food, and water. The good thing is that she knew the surrounding area and there was a sports store nearby.

She thought about how Glenn would react when she handed him the backpack. Would he hug her? Would he just grin and thank her? What if he didn't like the backpack?

The sound of a car broke her out of her daze. She quickly turned around to see a car pull up beside her. The window rolled down, showing a smiling Carl.

"What are you doing out here?" Enid asked, irritated because she already knew the answer.

"I saw you leave and I thought we could go for a drive," He responded, opening the passenger door for her.

Enid only rolled her eyes as she hopped into the car.

"Where to?" Carl inquired flirtatiously.

"To the sports store. Here, I'll direct you and you drive," Enid snapped, vexed with Carl's attitude.

That was their conversation all the way to the sports store; Enid directing and Carl driving. Carl didn't want their whole time together to be like this. He wanted to have fun with her, but Enid was too focused on getting to the store.

"Why do you even want to go here?" Carl looked at her as he parked.

"I need to get a backpack," Enid replied, climbing out of the car.

"You left Alexandria, knowing the Saviors are out there, just to get a backpack?!" Carl asked incredulously. "I'm sure there are backpacks in Alexandria."

"This is a special type of backpack...Look, if you don't want to do this you can go back. I didn't ask you to follow me!" Enid left a stunned Carl in the parking lot as she entered the store.

She immediately started searching for the backpack amongst the mess. She was too occupied with finding it that she didn't hear something approach her.

She felt it before she saw it; a walker. She crawled backwards, trying to get away from it.

She groped for her knives in her knapsack, trying to hold off the walker. It growled at her as it tried to bite her, but then it fell to the ground. Carl stood behind it with a bloody knife, looking down at her disappointedly.

"Thanks," Enid stood up and got back to her goal.

"Why do you even want this backpack?" Carl kicked at a soccer ball by his feet.

"It's a gift for someone," was all she said.

"For Glenn?" Enid instantly snapped her head in Carl's direction. He looked... hurt. Inside, he hoped that he was wrong; that she would deny it. But his suspicions and jealousy grew when she answered his question with a question:

"Why would you think that?"

"Because when the Saviors came you made a big deal about them taking the green balloons. I know what they meant to you...that they were related to _him_. And I had to come to get them to leave you alone."

"See, that's your problem, Carl. You always think I need your help when I don't. Yeah, I am trying to find a backpack for Glenn. He's my _friend._ "

"Yeah, right. I've seen the way you look at him," Carl sighed. Enid was fuming, but she ignored him and went back to searching.

"If you think he's going to go for a 16-year-old, you're going to be really disappointed," Carl tried appealing to her reason.

Enid was about to snap back, but something caught her eye. She rushed over to the wall excitedly.

"This is it!" She held the backpack almost lovingly in her arms.

"Alright, let's go then. We need to get back before my dad leaves," Carl rolled his eye.

* * *

They rode home in silence; Carl feeling dejected and Enid feeling elated.

"Uh oh," Carl said, seeing a crowd gathered at the gates. There was no way they could sneak in now.

The crowd turned towards the car that drove in. Rick looked furious at the driver, who tried not to look at his dad.

The teenagers got out of the car hesitantly, knowing what was in store for them.

"CARL!" Rick yelled. "What do you think you're doin'? Leaving at a time like this?!"

"Dad, I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't have left," Carl calmly explained. "But..." He looked at Enid, wondering if he should give his dad Enid's reason for leaving.

"But we needed to go for a drive. We wanted to get away from it all. Just for a bit. We needed an escape," Carl stared at Glenn as he said this, his jealousy swelling up again.

"It was too depressing here," Enid spoke up.

"You all should know better. Now don't let this happen again," Rick sighed. "There is no excuse for leaving."

"Yes, sir," they both answered at the same time.

"Alright, everyone's here now. Aaron and I are going to head out now," Rick addressed the crowd. "Be safe. Listen to whatever Michonne, Carl, and Glenn tells you."

Everyone went to hug and say goodbye to Rick and Aaron.

"Come back to us," Glenn told Rick.

"I will," Rick answered before Glenn surprised him by hugging him. Rick returned it, which surprised Glenn.

Michonne went up to Rick and passionately embraced him, which Rick did as well with the same emotion.

Carl was the last one to say bye to his dad. "Carl, you're strong. If anything happens to me, you can lead these people."

"Dad, you'll come back," Carl didn't want to believe otherwise. They hugged; Carl burying his face in his dad's shoulder, trying not to cry. Rick couldn't hold back his tears, holding onto his little boy for as long as he could.

Once they let go of each other, everyone watched as Rick and Aaron drove off into the unknown, hoping this would be the beginning of the end of Negan's reign.

As the crowd started to disperse, Enid went back to the car she was in. She pulled out the backpack and happily went up to Glenn.

"I got it," she smiled at him. Glenn smiled back at her as he took it from her hands. "Thank you, Enid. I knew you would."

Carl watched as they beamed at each other, realizing that Glenn had purposely asked Enid to get this backpack. She didn't do it on her own because he needed it; Glenn had known there wasn't this type of backpack in Alexandria. He had put her in harm's way, sending her off into Savior territory.

Carl's eye narrowed into a slit. He knew grief could do strange things to people, but this seemed almost diabolical. He wasn't sure what Glenn was up to, but he sure as hell didn't like it.


	9. 아홉 For All of Us

"We can make it together. But we can only make it together."

~Glenn Rhee

"Do you really think it's a good time to be leaving when Rick's gone?" Abraham asked Sasha, reclining on his favorite chair.

"If Rick is able to become allies with this King Ezekiel, then we're going to need all the support we can get. Abraham, I've never stopped thinking about what Jesus said," she knelt down beside him. "I believe I can do this." Tears glistened in her eyes.

Abraham stood up and took her into his arms, "I believe you can, too."

They held each other in silence for a while before Sasha broke it, "I know that scumbag Gregory will never agree to this though." She let go of him, sighing.

"I'm pretty sure I can convince him. I have a way with words," he gave her a toothy grin.

"I don't think you should come. If Negan does come back, you're going to need to be here," she said grimly.

"Sasha, the last time I wasn't with you two people died. I have to be there this time," he responded stubbornly. "And maybe I can live at Hilltop with you."

"Alexandria needs you here..." Sasha looked unsure, not wanting to leave Abraham and her friends behind.

"It needs you here as well," Abraham said sadly.

"We'll still be able to see each other often. Maybe we can even have a shuttle between Hilltop and Alexandria," Sasha giggled, causing Abraham to chuckle. They linked their hands together, not wanting to let go.

* * *

Abraham walked Sasha to the gates, not liking the idea she was going to walk to Hilltop by herself. But she wasn't going to have any of it. She was going to do this whether he liked it or not. Whether anyone liked it or not. Eugene even tried to protest this, but she practically forced him to open the gate. He finally did, albeit with much hesitation.

"Take a car at least," Abraham told her.

"No. We only have one car left. You all need it more than I do."

"Sasha, why do you have to leave right now? There are Saviors out there, Rick's gone, and-"

"These past few days have been incredibly tough for all of us," Sasha interrupted. Everyone is moping around, unsure of what's going to happen. I made a promise to myself the day Maggie and Daryl were killed that I... _we_ would kill Negan. This is how it begins. We can't just sit around and wait. We have to take back control over our lives."

Abraham nodded his head, proud of the woman he had chosen to love. Eugene, who was listening, even felt a surge of empowerment at her speech.

"I'm not much of a religious man, but Amen," He gave her a half-smile.

Footsteps were heard as they approached the pair, interrupting their goodbye. Glenn's eyes passed between them, wondering what was going on. "I'm just here for my wall duty," he told Eugene. "Are you two going somewhere?"

"I'm going to Hilltop," Sasha stated confidently.

"Alone?" Glenn asked.

"Yup," Abraham smiled at her. "She's already a badass woman, but she's going to be a badass leader."

The gears started turning in Glenn's mind, thinking how the chess board was being set. Their pieces were starting to fall into place, with Rick going to find The Kingdom and Sasha leading Hilltop. This was one step closer to his goal, declaring war on Negan and slaughtering him.

"What will happen to Gregory?" Glenn inquired, knowing that Hilltop's weak leader would do everything in his power to stay on top.

Sasha and Abraham exchanged glances. "We don't know yet. I'm sure Jesus has a plan..."

"I know the last time I was there Maggie negotiated a deal with him..." Glenn took a deep breath in. "If only she was here now." He could feel his eyes tearing up; they always did when he mentioned her name. "I want to go with you, Sasha."

"Glenn, Rick put you in charge. You can't just leave!" Sasha gaped at him.

"He also put Michonne and Carl in charge. They're better leaders than I am anyway," he paused, thinking about how he could convince her. "I don't know if I will be able to retain my cool if Negan does come back. I nearly shot him last time and he nearly killed me for it. I feel useless here. I want to help in any way I can. I want the same thing as you," He pleaded.

"Sasha, I'm not one to argue with you. But I would feel better if someone escorted you," Abraham looked at her intensely.

Sasha remained silent, mulling over Glenn's words. If they were going to accomplish this, they had to all work together and help out. It wasn't an "every man for himself" world anymore.

"Alright," She gave in.

"Let me get my stuff," Glenn went back to his house.

"Tell Gregory to suck it for me, okay?" Abraham said before he leaned in and kissed her passionately. Sasha was so lost in the moment she didn't hear Glenn come back.

"Who's going to take up wall duty then?" Eugene asked. "Eugene," Abraham was about to say something sarcastic, but stopped himself. "I'll relieve you."

Sasha and Glenn headed out on horseback, waving bye to Abraham and Eugene. A long road laid ahead of them, both to Hilltop and to overthrow Negan. A road filled with the shed of blood, tears, and sweat.

* * *

Elsewhere, Tara woke up to the sound of waves crashing against the shore. She looked around at her surroundings, unfamiliar with where she was. Beside her laid bottles of water, fish, and a spear.

She took the bottle, desperately drinking its contents. Her mouth was so dry despite being surrounded by water. Go figure.

She looked to see a young girl sitting on a rock, watching the waves. Tara quickly hid, knowing that no one could be trusted anymore. She patiently waited until the girl left, deciding to follow her. She had to live in a community and maybe they could help her. She left a good amount of distance between them, careful not to make any noise.

As she followed the girl, she took note of her clothing. She had never seen anything like it. It was a dress made out of net, seaweed, and shells. To Tara, this was indeed interesting.

Suddenly, the girl stopped in the middle of the forest. Tara immediately hid behind a tree, watching to see what was happening.

The girl looked up to the sky and let out a birdlike whistle. As soon as she finished, ladders dropped down from the trees.

Hesitantly, Tara gazed up to see what the ladders were connected to. Her jaw dropped in amazement; the ladders had come down from none other than treehouses!

Tara was too caught up in her awe at the ingenuity of this that she didn't notice that some of the women from up above had seen her.

They shouted, pulling out guns on her. Tara didn't even look back as she ran from their bullets.

They kept shooting and even threw spears at her, which missed her by an inch. Tara was becoming out of breath, not sure how much longer she could continue running from these women.

Out of the blue, a net was thrown over her, entangling her from escaping. She struggled relentlessly, her attempts to escape futile. Several women, also wearing similar clothing to the girl, approached her with stern looks on their faces. A blonde, middle-aged woman carrying a trident stood right in front of her, and Tara didn't need to be told this was their leader.

"So... I like your get-up," Tara gestured towards the sky.

The woman only smiled in response.

* * *

It was already nightfall by the time Glenn and Sasha arrived at Hilltop. They hadn't talked much on the way over there; both too invested in their thoughts and keeping themselves on the horse.

"I don't know how we're going to get in," Sasha looked at Glenn tiredly.

"Yeah, I don't really feel like spending the night out here," He glanced over at the walkers slowly moving towards them.

Sasha grew impatient, jumping off the horse and knocked furiously on the wooden gate. To their surprise, it opened, revealing Jesus standing on the other side.

"You're lucky tonight I was on guard," He smiled brightly.

"Sasha, I'm glad you're back. I was hoping you would take up my offer," He gestured for her and Glenn to enter.

"Yeah, I thought about it for a long time. It wasn't until... Until Carol died that I decided to listen to you," Sasha responded, walking into Hilltop.

"Someone else from your group died?" Jesus looked at the pair sympathetically. "Was it Negan?"

"No, she took her life," Glenn answered somberly. The wound was still fresh for him, dripping blood out from inside his heart.

"I'm very sorry," was all Jesus said.

"Rick's not at Alexandria. He left to go find another community that Carol told him about. I thought this would be the best time to leave since he wouldn't try and stop me. Note how I said _try_ ," she smirked. Glenn and Jesus grinned at her determination. "We've all got jobs to do. And this is mine."

"I still don't know how to get Gregory to step down. But we can talk about all this tomorrow. I'm sure you two are exhausted," Jesus led them to a camper next to the main house. "You two can sleep here. I'm sure Gregory will _love_ seeing your faces tomorrow morning," He opened the door.

"I'm sure he will," Sasha stepped in first, following Glenn. They expressed their gratitude to him and said goodnight.

"I'll sleep on the couch. I don't want Abraham knocking me out," Glenn teased. Sasha laughed as she collapsed on the bed. Tomorrow would certainly be an interesting day, but for now, they embraced sleep.

* * *

Tara was interrogated about her identity, community, and why she was there. She gave honest answers about everything, knowing lying would not be helpful here.

The leader, Netanya, did most of the interrogating. The other two women would only speak to give Tara a hard time, which Netanya would quickly put a stop to.

"Look, I don't want any trouble. I'm not here to hurt or steal from any of you. I just want to get back home," Tara begged.

"I understand that. But we still need to discuss some things," Netanya explained. Tara sighed wearily, sitting on the hard, wooden floor.

"I need to find my friend. He could be injured," Tara tried to get these women to understand.

"I don't think you get it," the woman named Beatrice spat. "We could have killed you already."

"Beatrice, enough," Netanya stopped her. "But Tara, we shoot anyone on the spot. Or more specifically any _man,"_ She looked at Tara seriously.

"Wait...what?" Tara looked at her fearfully.

Netanya nodded. "But it's almost dinner time so we can discuss this there." She motioned for Tara to follow her, exiting out of the house. "The bridge seems like it'll break, but we built it pretty sturdy," Netanya said as she crossed the suspended rope bridge that led to another house. There were several bridges like this to connect the houses to each other.

"Is it too late to mention I'm scared of heights?" Tara called out as she saw the women crossing the bridge with ease. The women looked back at her with a "Really?" type of expression. Tara gripped the ropes tightly and crossed, trying not to look down as she did this.

She let out a sigh of relief once she had gotten across it, heading into the house. Inside was a table with five seats around it. The table already had plates and utensils set.

"Sit down, Tara. My granddaughter, Cindy, will bring out dinner shortly," Netanya said warmly.

Tara took a seat nervously, asking, "So what was this about killing any man?"

Netanya was about to answer her, but Cindy, the young girl Tara had first encountered, appeared with a basket. Cindy instantly recognized Tara and said hello.

"Ah, Cindy. This is Tara," Netanya introduced the two. Cindy smiled as did Tara, neither of them saying they knew each other already.

The women started eating and Tara dug into her... fish. Oh, well. Beggars can't be choosers.

"As I was about to say, yes we kill any men who wander in here," Netanya wiped her mouth.

"That explains why there are no men here," Tara said with her mouth full. "But why?"

The women all exchanged looks with each other before Netanya spoke. "We have had a bad history with men. All of us here used to be part of another group... but we're the only survivors now. Cindy is all I have left of my family."

Tara remained speechless at this, knowing the feeling of that history. "I'm so sorry," she finally said.

"It's not your fault. But we just don't take chances with men anymore. So if you leave, which I hope you won't, you can't come back with your friend."

"So, Tara, why were you looking for guns and medicine way out here?" Beatrice looked at her darkly. "You said you got into some trouble with walkers and ended up knocked out in the river. But there must be other places around your community to find those items."

"We, uh, we had to look further because we have a deal with another community. We had to kill this Negan guy and give them weapons and medicine in exchange for food," she didn't notice the wide-eyed expressions on the women once she mentioned the name "Negan." "And we did kill him. We raided his base, this big satellite place, and we killed everyone there. We're just like you. We don't take chances either."

"Well, I can see you want to get back to your group. And I have no reason to keep you here. Tomorrow, Beatrice and Lauren will walk you back to the bridge," Netanya finished eating.

"Thank you. For everything," Tara smiled a little before she chomped down on her food again.

* * *

The door to the camper swung open, letting in a frantic Jesus. "Get up. Gregory wants to talk to you."

Sasha stretched while Glenn stood up, yawning. They walked over to the main house; Sasha thinking about how she'd approach Gregory and Glenn thinking about he'd convince Gregory.

Gregory was waiting for them in his office, furious at Jesus for letting them enter Hilltop.

"I told you to leave and never come back!" Gregory jumped out of his chair, pointing at Sasha.

"Sir, we have unfinished business," Sasha reasoned.

"NO! Our business is finished! The Saviors are due any day now and you need to get the hell outta here! What they did to Marcia and Danny will be what happens to all of us!" Gregory shouted, infuriating Glenn, who knew who he was referring to.

"Her name is Maggie. His name is Daryl," Glenn said quietly, trying to keep his anger under control.

"Yeah, yeah," Gregory dismissed him. "You all just need to go immediately!"

"They're not going anywhere," Jesus stepped in front of them. "Sasha wants to stay and she's going to."

"I'm the leader here, Jesus. Or did you forget that since you're always gone?" Gregory scoffed.

"Maybe right now. But I think things are going to change soon," Jesus retorted.

Gregory's face turned beet red at Jesus's defiance. "You're going to be in charge?!"

"Not me," Jesus glanced over at Sasha.

"And I want to negotiate why I would be a good leader," Sasha stepped forward.

"Maybe we could one-on-one," Gregory said sleazily. Glenn's fist collided with his face in a powerful punch before Jesus or Sasha could react.

"I'm getting really tired of all these leaders disrespecting women," Glenn growled. "Negan already insulted my wife's memory. I'm not going to let another douchebag insult, Sasha, too."

Gregory placed his hand over his bruising cheek, preparing to yell again. But the sounds of roaring trucks interrupted him. Negan's men were here.

"Hide them in the closet," Gregory ordered Jesus as he went out to meet the Saviors. Jesus nodded his head as Gregory touched his sore wound. Today was just going _well_.

* * *

Cindy watched in hiding as Tara walked towards her doom. She knew her grandmother had ordered Tara to be killed.

She was prepared to intervene when she saw Beatrice and Lauren pull out their guns on Tara. She was not going to see more people get killed. But then something unexpected happened.

"We should kill you. There's nothing left for you back at home," Lauren waved her gun at a surprised Tara.

"Don't. I won't come back here. Just please let me go," Tara slowly backed away.

"You better not. Or we won't hesitate to shoot you," Beatrice warned. "Or any of your friends."

"Yeah, I promise I won't come back..." Tara was trying to get away from these insane women.

"Good luck identifying the bodies of your dead friends," Beatrice started to walk away along with Lauren.

"Wait, you know about what happened to my group? How?" Tara asked.

"Because we used to work for Negan and one day we decided to rise up against him. He doesn't put up with that shit and he attacked our community," Beatrice explained annoyedly. "Netanya, Cindy, Lauren, and me were the only ones to survive his attack. He destroyed everything. Just like he destroyed your group. You only killed a portion of his men. There's more. There always is."

"No... No..." Tara was in denial.

"It's true," Cindy said, stepping out from the brush. Tara felt her eyes well up with tears.

"Go! What are you waiting for?!" Lauren pulled out her gun again. Tara immediately fled, desperately holding onto the hope her friends were alive. She would not rest until she reached the city.

* * *

"So what do you want to show me?" Simon, leader of his group of Saviors, questioned curiously. Gregory smiled, leading him to the closet in the hallway. Oh, how great it would be when he turned over those two nuisances to the Saviors. He could already imagine the looks on their faces when he opened the door.

But the only look of surprise was coming from Gregory. They weren't in here! Dammit, Jesus! He could feel his smug grin radiating off him from across the room.

But Gregory couldn't dwell on that. He had to think fast and the only thing in the closet was...

Alcohol.

"I wanted to give you this," He handed Simon a bottle of scotch.

"Scotch? I'm not really a scotch type of guy. But Negan will sure appreciate this," Simon grinned at Gregory, who was sweating. Simon went into the closet and took the whole box of alcohol. "I'll give this to him. Don't worry, I'll give you credit. Some credit."

Gregory could only watch in utter shock as Simon took all of his alcohol. Jesus was trying so hard not to laugh at this sight.

"You are a solid man, Gregory. You better keep showering us with more gifts! I can't to see what you get us next time!" Simon said cheerfully before leaving a stunned Gregory.

"Jesus!" Gregory's shock quickly turned into anger. "I told you to put them in the closet!"

"I did, but you didn't say which closet," Jesus went into Gregory's office, gesturing to that closet.

"You sold us out!" Sasha was livid as she stormed out of the cramped space. "And you call yourself a leader?! You're a coward!"

"Like you could lead these people, you stupid bitch!" Gregory laughed. Sasha was about to slug him, but Glenn stopped her.

"If you won't listen to her, maybe you'll at least hear me out," Glenn said. "I think we need to discuss some things and how it'll benefit both our parties."

"You will listen to him,"Jesus looked over at Gregory expectedly.

"Fine, let's make this quick," Gregory groaned. Jesus and Sasha left the two of them standing there.

"This will be quick. I promise," Glenn started. "I know Maggie was a better negotiator than me, so hopefully I'll still be able to persuade you."

"And a lot better to look at," Gregory folded his arms. Glenn's mouth twitched at this as he walked over to Gregory's desk. "She sure was."

"What are you looking for?" Gregory looked at the man suspiciously as Glenn pulled open different drawers.

"Oh, just this," He pulled out a gun.

"What the?!" Gregory shouted. But Glenn didn't point it at him, he handed it over insistently.

"Here, take it." Gregory took it slowly, unsure of what was happening.

"I told you this would be quick," Glenn said before he grabbed Gregory's wrist. He aimed at the wall and pulled the trigger with Gregory's finger. Then he turned the gun on Gregory himself and shot him squarely in the forehead. Glenn started breathing heavily and dropped the gun to the floor. Just as he did, Jesus and Sasha rushed in.

"Glenn! What happened?!" Jesus stared at the blood pooling over Gregory's body.

"Gregory went to his desk, pulled a gun on me and threatened to hand my dead body and Sasha's over to the Saviors. I tried to wrestle the gun away from him. It went off... twice," Glenn feigned his shock at the turn of events.

Sasha was in too much surprise to speak, leaving Jesus to say, "I knew he was the scum of the earth. But to stoop that low?"

"It doesn't matter now. We have to clean this up," Sasha finally said. Glenn and Jesus nodded firmly, lifting up Gregory's body and carrying it out.

Once they had wiped the blood, Jesus was going to gather people of Hilltop and tell them what had happened. He knew they would understand why Glenn did what he did. He just didn't know how The Saviors would react to this. Or how the people would welcome Sasha.

Jesus advised Glenn to leave immediately. Staying would only cause further problems for both of them.

"Before I go, can I change clothes? These have blood stains," Glenn asked sheepishly.

"Sure, I have some clothes you can have. Take whatever you want," Jesus directed him to his room.

Glenn emerged in a black long sleeve shirt under a grey jacket with black pants. In fact, he was dressed in pure black since his boots were the same color. Sasha and Jesus glanced at him with a look of "wow."

"Well, I'll see you all in Alexandria," Glenn went up to Sasha and hugged her. "You'll do great here, Sasha. I believe in you. Maggie believed in you," he reassured her. Sasha hugged him back tightly.

"Thank you."

Jesus gave Glenn one of those bro-hugs before telling him to be safe. Glenn assured he would be.

Glenn couldn't suppress his smile as he journeyed all the way back home. This was the happiest he had felt in a long time. "We're almost there, Maggie," he looked down at his pocket watch, before pressing it against his lips.

* * *

Tara swiftly approached Alexandria, seeing her favorite ginger atop the walls. Abraham snatched his binoculars, saying, "Well I'll be."

Tara grinned as she was let into the city, but her smile dropped when she saw Abraham's sober face. He always had the hard job.

Tara was still crying when Rosita entered the medical center.

"Tara, you have to have seen something out there. There has to be a clue, a lead," she knelt beside her. "Anything, I'll take anything. I just need something that can help us."

Tara stared blankly at her shoes. "There was... a place. By the ocean. A place filled with women."


	10. 열 See the World Burn Part 1

"I'm just another monster too."

~Carl Grimes

Glenn had barely stepped foot back in Alexandria before he was embraced by a person he thought had been long dead.

"Tara?" He looked at his friend in wonder.

"Glenn!" Her eyes were misty with tears as she stared into his dark brown ones, hugging him again. He slowly hugged her again, feeling... _feeling all sorts of emotions_. Joy, grief, shock, and confusion.

"Where have you been?"

"I've been on the longest supply run ever. But it doesn't matter. What matters is how you're doing after all of this," she responded.

"I've never felt more exhausted and hopeless," he looked down at his feet.

"You look like it. You need to get some rest," she threw her arm around him, leading him to his house.

"No, there are several things I have to do. Right now, Rick's gone and I'm one of the leaders," he started off towards the church. "Tell everyone they need to meet in the church for a town meeting," he ordered.

Tara watched him stalk off, noticing a dramatic shift in her friend's personality. She frowned, deciding she didn't have much of a choice than to follow his orders.

* * *

"I have gathered you all here to update you on what's been happening outside of these walls," Glenn explained to the dozens of people anxiously watching him. "Rick is off trying to find a potential ally in Morgan. The leader of Hilltop has died and Sasha has most likely taken over in his place." This earned the gapes of many people in the pews. "That leader pulled a gun out on me and threatened to turn Sasha and me over to the Saviors. I wrestled the gun out of his hand, but I had no choice than to defend myself," he quickly added.

People shifted uncomfortably in their seats, unsure of how to take this news.

"How will the Saviors react to this?" Spencer folded his arms over his chest.

"The Saviors are the type of the group who don't care who's in charge as long as their demands are met and the leader bows down to them," Glenn responded. "Of course, Sasha will only act as if she is loyal to them. The more allies we get, the better chance we have to wage a winning war on Negan."

Rosita gripped Tara's hand when Glenn said this, urging her to speak up. "Tara, you need to tell him."

"No. I can't. It won't do you all any good," she answered worriedly.

Rosita rolled her eyes, "If there's a price, I'll pay it. But this is too important to ignore." Tara remained silent, shaking her head.

"Glenn," Rosita stood up. "There is another community Tara found." Everyone turned their heads towards Rosita; Glenn perking up at this news.

"Really? Where is it, Tara?"

Tara opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. "She said it's by the ocean," Rosita answered for her.

"Then we have to find it. They could help us," Glenn said hopefully.

"No. They won't help. They all fought Negan and lost. He brutally attacked their community and they will do whatever it takes to stay hidden," Tara finally answered.

"Tara, if Rick can't come to an agreement with The Kingdom we will not be able to fight Negan. We need more people!" Rosita glared at her friend. "How do you not understand this?" Tara looked up at her friend in shock and sadness.

"If I go back, they'll kill me... They'll kill you all," Tara mumbled.

"We'll have to take that risk. Even if it's the smallest chance of gaining an ally," Glenn went up to Tara. "Just show me where this place is and I'll go."

"This community is made up of women. They hate men; they kill any man who finds them," she explained desperately.

"Then I'll go," Rosita said resoundingly.

"I want to see Negan suffer more than anyone here." Glenn looked at Rosita deeply, but addressed the whole group. "Every action that will get us towards accomplishing that I have to be part of. This is _my_ battle."

"Are you both crazy?!" Carl rushed towards the pair, unable to keep his anger down any longer. "My dad is gone and you want to leave? _Again?"_ He gazed up at Glenn defiantly. "He might have left you in charge, Glenn. But I am, too."

"Carl, you and Michonne can take care of them," He looked around at the concerned faces. "I know there will be too many people gone... but there might be more if we don't do anything," Glenn tried appealing to Carl's emotions.

"You seem to think you're the only one who can make decisions," Carl scoffed. "Michonne, what do you think?" He looked to the woman.

"I-I think Glenn and Rosita should at least try," she rose up. To her, being a leader meant stepping up when Rick was gone. He couldn't do this alone, he needed all of his people.

Carl looked at her in disbelief and disappointment, but accepted her verdict grudgingly.

"Then it's settled. We'll leave tomorrow," He smiled wanly at Rosita. "Tara," He had never seen her look so broken and it panged him to know he was partially the cause. "You know what to do."

* * *

Rick and Aaron were currently in a strange predicament. They had been traveling in search of The Kingdom when several people dressed in armor surrounded their car. They had spears pointed at them, blocking their chance of driving off. Rick didn't think they were part of The Saviors; they never wore stuff like this. That, and the fact they looked too clean to be Negan's men.

"We are looking for The Kingdom. We are from Alexandria," Aaron lowered his window to answer their question of who they were and what they were doing.

"Why do you want to find it?" A tall, skinny man asked.

"We came looking for a friend who is there," Rick replied, careful not to give too much information.

"Who's your friend?" A woman next to the man was now the one to interrogate them.

"Morgan," was all Rick said. The people lowered their spears at this.

"How do you know he's there?" This did not stop their questions.

"A woman named Carol came from there, she was part of our group, and she told us he was there," Rick struggled to keep his voice from shaking.

The people paused at this. Finally, the first man said, "We know a Morgan."

* * *

It was hard to tell who was more surprised: Rick and Aaron at the sight of The Kingdom or Morgan at the sight of his friends.

"Rick?" Morgan rushed to greet them, realizing it had been so long since he last saw the pair. But he noticed something about them; in their eyes. They looked weary, devoid of any life or hope. They also looked like they would break down at any moment.

"Morgan..." Rick's grief came out as tears as he saw his oblivious friend. Aaron lowered his head sadly at what he knew was about to come.

"I'm guessing Carol told you about this," Morgan gestured around him.

Rick nodded glumly. "She did."

"Rick, what's wrong? What's happened?" Morgan was becoming frightened over this change in his friends.

"Daryl...Maggie...Carol... They're dead," Rick cried.

"What? How?!" Morgan was not sure he heard this right.

"I'll just tell it from the beginning. Glenn and Michonne went looking for Daryl after he left looking for Carol. Then, Maggie got sick and needed to see a doctor at Hilltop. The Saviors trapped us... we fell right into their plan... we were all taken to see Negan... and... and he... bashed Daryl's head in," Rick could no longer speak.

"Maggie was too ill and without any medical care, she died. And so did her baby. Negan took his bat to make sure..." Aaron continued. "We carried their bodies back to Alexandria and Carol met up with us there. She felt guilty over what happened. It didn't help Negan came to Alexandria and stole our belongings. She killed herself, she couldn't live in a world controlled by Negan."

Morgan gripped on tightly to his staff, feeling like he would vomit. "You all work for Negan too?" He knew the answer already; it seemed as if everyone worked for this devil now.

"Are you saying this place does too?" Rick looked at Morgan helplessly. Morgan nodded stiffly.

"Is this a good thing or bad thing?" Aaron directed his question at Rick.

"We'll only know for sure once we talk to King Ezekiel. Morgan, will you take us to him? Carol said that he could help us."

"Help you do what exactly?" Morgan felt his emotions bubbling to the surface.

"Help us kill Negan."

* * *

Morgan led the pair to the auditorium, but stopped as he reached for the door handle. "King Ezekiel is an eccentric man. With an eccentric pet," He warned.

Rick and Aaron exchanged glances at this, wondering what was behind that door. They didn't have to wait long before their question was answered with a thundering roar.

"Shiva! Soothe your soul, it is only friend Morgan and guests!" King Ezekiel petted his tiger.

Rick and Aaron marched towards the stage hesitantly, stopping themselves from running in the other direction.

"King Ezekiel, these men are from Alexandria. This is Rick, the leader from my community, and Aaron," Morgan followed behind the pair.

"Welcome to The Kingdom! I trust Carol has returned unharmed to Alexandria?" Ezekiel leaned forward on his throne.

Rick and Aaron remained silent, leaving Morgan to answer: "Carol... has taken her life."

"How can this be?! She seemed in good spirits when she left here!" Ezekiel exclaimed.

"She felt she was responsible for some of the deaths that happened," Rick finally said. "She wasn't. I am." Morgan gazed at his friend with great sorrow.

"This is very hard to take in. I greatly enjoyed Carol's company. I considered her a friend," Ezekiel sighed. "What deaths, if I may inquire?"

"Two of my people were killed by Negan," Rick stated. "We were all lined up and forced to watch him beat them with a bat. He laughed and mocked them and us as he did this."

"That is terrible. I cannot even fathom that, much less the depravity behind it," Ezekiel raised his voice. "There are no words to describe the evilness in that man. We have heard the stories of what he done to other groups."

"So you are not loyal to him?" Rick asked curiously.

"We work for him, but we have used subtle tactics to be rid of him. The hogs we provide him have been fed walker meat," Ezekiel said darkly.

Rick looked to Aaron with a glimmer of hope, thinking he found out that this would be a good thing.

"We are currently trying to gather allies. All of our guns were taken, our morale has been broken, but you could help us. We have a potential ally in another colony. Of course, we'll need more," Rick looked to Ezekiel anxiously.

"As much as I detest Negan and his men, I feel as if The Kingdom's participation in this would prove futile," Ezekiel answered. "There will not be enough knights and weapons to wage a war."

"With our numbers, yours, and possibly Hilltop's we can wage a war, and win," Rick's voice raised in hysteria. "You have a tiger! That would get any man, even Negan, to piss his pants!"

"Her name is Shiva," Shiva looked at her master when he said this. "She is a terrifying creature, I agree, but this discussion is over. The safety of my people is at the utmost importance and the chance of defeat is too great of a risk. I am sorry, Rick. The stakes are just too high," Ezekiel frowned. "You can stay for tonight, but tomorrow you must return to your community. I know it seems hopeless right now, but you will eventually learn to just accept this. For the sake of your people."

Rick couldn't believe this. He had high expectations for this meeting and it all went awry. He looked at Ezekiel in pity, seeing also Shiva glare at him. He quickly left with Aaron, Morgan choosing to stay behind. He too expected a different outcome.

"The greatest slave in a kingdom is usually the king of it," Morgan looked disappointedly at Ezekiel before exiting.

Morgan couldn't explain his thoughts right now. Yes, he firmly held onto the belief of all life is precious. But just recently he had broken that rule. He had saved Carol, only for her to die. He remembered he had told Rick to talk to Negan instead of attacking them. Would that have been a better option? Maybe, maybe not. People might still be alive, but they would probably still have to work for him. He knew his friends well enough they wouldn't take that lying down. They would revolt- it seemed as if a war was inevitable with Negan.

Morgan exhaled, thinking how Negan did not consider life to be precious. Morgan did not consider his group to be innocent in this, but what Negan did was sickening. It was one thing to kill the people who killed yours, but to find thrill in beating someone... A pregnant woman of all people.

He knew if there was to be a war he could not hold onto this ideology anymore. He would have to toss it aside, something he wasn't sure he could do again.

* * *

Glenn and Michonne had made sure to come up with excuses as to why so many people had left if Negan arrived. He had made sure everything was set in case he made an unexpected visit. Rosita and he had also made sure to pack warm, winter clothes for their journey to Oceanside as the community was named.

When Glenn drove, Rosita would sleep. But when Rosita drove, Glenn would stay wide awake and talk. They had tried to figure out a plan on they would approach this community without Glenn ending up dead.

"I'll enter it first. Then I'll tell them I have a man with me, but I'll assure them you're okay," Rosita said, keeping her eyes on the road.

"How will you assure them?" Glenn looked at her.

"...I was thinking about telling them about Negan and what he took from you.."

"Oh," He didn't appreciate his grief being used as a tool, but if it must be...

The trip took several days. They had to sleep inside the car to keep warm, even huddling close together for heat. Nothing happened between them, Glenn made sure of that. Rosita knew this was not the time for pointless romance or whatever. They had a mission and deep down Rosita knew Glenn would never stop grieving over Maggie.

Their first obstacle came in the bridge Tara had told them about. There was a horde of walkers roaming around there. Glenn and Rosita ran across the cars parked there to avoid them, seeing they did not have guns to kill them.

Once they were over that, Glenn waited as Rosita walked over. She looked up at the trees, taking in the architecture and ingenuity of these women. They had built a treehouse, which was an amazing feat.

The women were in their normal routines when Rosita approached them. Before they could ambush her, she got down on her knees and put up her hands.

"I only come to talk. I do not wish to harm you all," Rosita calmly said. The women came down from their houses with weapons in hand.

"How did you find us?" Netanya came up to her, a gun pointed at Rosita.

"Tara told us about you."

Beatrice and Lauren swore, causing Netanya to glare at them. "I thought I told you all to kill her!"

"We're sorry, Netanya. But we couldn't... we were weak..." Lauren lowered her head in shame.

"Then I'll make sure that mistake doesn't happen again," Netanya aimed her gun at Rosita.

"Grandma, no!" Cindy pulled Netanya's arm back, causing her to fire a shot into the air. The women shrieked in surprise; Rosita jumped.

"Rosita!" Glenn came running over to the crowd, thinking something awful had happened.

The women all turned to see this man, a being they hadn't seen in so long, coming towards them. Rosita could sense the alarm in the women and she rose to her feet. "Don't hurt him! He's with me! He is suffering as much as you are! His pregnant wife was killed by Negan!"

Glenn stopped in his tracks and he and the women just stared at each other. Thinking this would be a good time to say something, he said: "I loved her...I still do... Negan took my entire world away from me. He took away me being a husband, a father, and gave me emptiness in return."

The women continued watching him, waiting for him to continue.

"I understand your hate towards men. We have ruined this world. You are justified in not trusting us. But Negan does not even consider me one; he considers me less than a man. He sees me as subhuman just like you all," He reasoned. "That is why we have to work together to defeat him."

"Put down your weapons," Netanya motioned to her women. "I am deeply sorry for the pain you are going through. And you are absolutely right about how Negan sees us. But we will never challenge him again. We will remain here and you coming here has proven foolish. For all I know, The Saviors could have followed you here."

"Please. We're desperate. We'll take any sort of help," Rosita pleaded. "He can't get away with this!"

Netanya thought about this for a moment. "We'll give you two guns."

Rosita nodded, gratefully. "Thank you. That will help a lot. He took away all of our guns." Glenn went towards Rosita and stood next to her, looking at her somberly.

Netanya ordered Cindy to go to the armory and bring back two guns.

"I'm sorry we couldn't come to an agreement," Glenn stated as Cindy handed them the guns.

"I am, too. Now you must leave. And be sure to never send anyone else here again. I mean it. My patience has grown thin with your group," Netanya warned.

"Yes, ma'am. Thanks, again," Glenn answered. "If you ever need anything, we live in the Alexandria safe zone."

"I know where that is," Netanya answered. "And I'm sure we won't, but I appreciate the offer."

Glenn and Rosita left in silence, the latter satisfied that they at least got some weapons.

Glenn, on the other hand, was not.

"We can leave tomorrow. It's going to be dark soon," Glenn opened the car door and drove away from the bridge, parking at a safe distance.

"Yeah, okay," Rosita climbed into the back and started eating. She passed some food to Glenn and he ate his dinner in deep thought.

"It could have gone worse. It is disappointing, but these women aren't kidding around. They would have killed us if we stuck around," Rosita sighed.

"Yeah," Glenn said absentmindedly.

Night fell, Rosita was already sound asleep when Glenn snuck out of the car. He made sure not to disturb her, walking to the trunk and pulling up the carpet. It revealed a hidden backpack that had a wired, metal bat attached to it. He unzipped the backpack and pulled out a cigarette pack and lighter. He carefully shut the trunk and went off towards the bridge.

He practiced his swings, hitting each walker on that damn bridge as he crossed. He needed to be in the right state of mind for what he was about to do.

When he arrived at the community, he didn't hesitate in taking out a bottle of lighter fluid from his backpack and quickly began pouring it around the trees. He felt a pull within him to stop this each time he squeezed the fluid out; a pull to just leave and never look back. This wasn't who he was, he would never do this.

But that was the Glenn who still had Maggie. Who still saw beauty and goodness in the world.

This Glenn only saw horror, anguish, and rage and that was what pushed him to finish this.

He flicked open his lighter and lit a cigarette with it. He had never smoked, but it looked like this Glenn was now a smoker as well. He put it in his mouth, tasting the smoke and nicotine.

He stuck his lighter in his pocket, enjoying the peace the outdoors brought.

"I didn't even get to see the beach," he realized, tossing his cigarette to the forest ground.

He walked away just as the flames spread and the screams began.


	11. 열하나 See the World Burn Part 2

The flames circled and licked the trees, consuming everything in sight. It was only a matter of minutes before the houses were up in smoke. The women were scrambling frantically to climb out, grabbing whatever they could. The flames leapt from one house to another swiftly, traveling across the bridges, hell-bent on destruction.

Netanya ordered everyone to get to the ground below and gather whatever weapons they could salvage. She knew this was arson and she had a feeling who was responsible.

The screams interrupted her thoughts. To her horror, she saw women aflame, leaping to the ground in agony. Others were desperately climbing down the ladders before those too caught on fire.

Netanya searched desperately for her granddaughter, trying to see if she made it out safely.

"Cindy!" She cried out.

"Grandma!" A voice came from below. Netanya looked down and saw her granddaughter below, waving to her.

"GO! Get away from here!"

"Not until you climb down!" Cindy cried back. Netanya knew her granddaughter to be stubborn, but she couldn't just leave her women behind. She was the captain of this ship and if she had to go down with, she would.

"Netanya, please," Lauren told her. "You have to get down." She moved the woman to one of the last remaining ladders. "I can get everyone down and get some weapons." Netanya solemnly climbed down, looking up at Lauren who ran over the burning armory. Just as Netanya reached the ground, the house that held the weapons collapsed into a fiery heap.

"LAUREN!" Netanya screamed, moving away from the flames and debris.

"We have to leave. It's not safe!" Cindy clung to her grandmother fearfully. Netanya could only watch with tears as the safe haven she built was devoured by greedy flames. Cindy led her away from the destruction, unable to hold back her anguish.

Elsewhere, Beatrice was already running away from the place that used to be her home. The glow from the flames provided enough light to guide her safely.

A pair of hands shoved her to a nearby tree roughly and hit her head against the trunk to knock her out.

She groaned as she went unconscious, not able to get a glimpse of her attacker. A man dressed in all black stood above her, a metal bat in his hand. He gripped it tightly with both hands, raising it up with full strength.

"I'm sorry it had to be this way," he whispered, not able to look at the woman. He wanted to spare her, but there was no door number four. This really was the only way to make this look like it was Negan's doing.

When Glenn returned to the car, he hid the backpack and bloody bat back under the carpet. He felt exhausted and wanted nothing more than to sleep. But he knew they had to get far away from here. He opened the driver's door and started the car, thinking Rosita was still asleep.

"Where have you been?!" Rosita's voice cut into the silence, startling him. He turned his head towards the back seat, only to be met with Rosita's fury.

"I woke up to find you missing! How do you think I felt waking up to see you gone?! Do you realize how scared I was?!" Glenn could only listen to her rant, feeling guilty and stupid for scaring her like this.

"I almost went looking for you! I was about to when you suddenly showed up again! Where the hell were you?!" He didn't answer, infuriating her more.

"Glenn! What did you do?! Why... Why do you smell like smoke and blood?" Her voice started to quiver. "You just come back smelling like smoke... and there are stains on you... Oh, God. Glenn, what did you do?!" She started to sob. "Glenn... what have you done?"

Glenn embraced her tightly, letting her cry into him. Everything that happened that night overwhelmed him; he could no longer hold back his misery.

"What I did... was for all of us..." He cried with her. He finally let go of her, leaving her to weep alone. He drove off into the night, leaving his sins to burn and disappear into the smoke.

* * *

At The Kingdom, Rick decided to explore what this place had to offer. He wanted to see what this place had to offer. He wanted to see what Carol saw; he wanted to know some of the final sights of her life.

He went into a garden that had fire pits surrounding it. He saw different types of fruit: apples, pears, and pomegranates. He reached out to pick an apple when he heard a booming voice:

"I see you have found our garden!"

Rick quickly turned around to see King Ezekiel standing behind him. He was without his tiger, which gave Rick a sense of relief.

"I was just looking around. I didn't mean to-" Rick started to say.

"Nonsense. Do not apologize. You are free to look around," Ezekiel stepped towards him.

"Your kingdom is beautiful," Rick sat on a bench beside one of the fire pits. The flames danced around him in the night, making the garden look even more mystical.

"Thank you. I have done my best to provide a paradise for my people," Ezekiel sat beside him.

"Seeing this place makes me wonder if I shouldn't have been the leader... I failed so many times... I've gotten too many people killed," Rick wasn't sure why he was saying this. He wasn't known to open up to strangers.

Ezekiel looked at the man curiously. "Some of my people have been killed too. And there isn't a day that goes by that I don't feel any guilt. But what keeps me sane are the people I have saved."

Rick noticed Ezekiel had dropped his Shakespearean talk. "I thought you actually spoke Old English."

"Why, of course not! I used to be an actor before this all started," Ezekiel laughed. "But playing this role, as king, has kept everyone's spirits high. I didn't ask to be the leader, Rick. As you didn't either. That's what makes a leader though, in my opinion at least. You don't want this role, but you make do with it. Anyone who does want this only wants it for power, control, for the wrong reasons essentially."

Rick pulled out a paper from his pocket and handed it to Ezekiel. "Carol wrote this... before she..." he trailed off. Ezekiel read carefully, before sighing sadly.

"What you said about pretending and leadership reminded me of what she said," Rick looked at Ezekiel with bleary eyes. "I can't tell you how many times I've read that letter. Probably so much that I memorized it."

Ezekiel handed it back over to Rick, who folded it and put it gently in his pocket.

"Carol believed in me, in us. She believed in you. I'm not going to argue against your decision. Because I understand why you refused," Rick continued, thinking about their deal with Hilltop. There was a pause between them until Rick stood up to go to bed.

"Before I leave, I need to know how you got that tiger," Rick cocked his head. Ezekiel chuckled, "I rescued her as a cub. Since then, she's been my partner." Rick smiled at this.

"Rick, the letter you showed me really resonated within me. Carol is correct, we are the last ones carrying the fire. And if we let Negan extinguish that, we might as well be already dead. Carol didn't believe this life was worth living. She didn't consider herself strong, which was not true. She was one of the strongest people I've met," Ezekiel rose beside Rick, who looked at him in awe.

"Negan assumes he's stronger and smarter than anyone who serves him and that attitude will be his doom," Ezekiel stated confidently. "Rick, I will help you in this war against Negan."

"I appreciate that," Rick felt his heart flutter with hope. "We will prevail in this."

Ezekiel smiled warmly, "I am a fan of Lord of the Rings and as Sam says, There is some good in this world and it is worth fighting for." Rick agreed with this, remembering the faces of all who had departed. They were worth fighting for, what they lived and breathed for was worth fighting for. The people who lived on deserved to be fought for.

"Plus I do want to see Negan piss his pants when he meets Shiva," Ezekiel smirked.

* * *

It had been about a week since Negan had last seen the people of Alexandria. Since that day, he could not get them out of his brain. No other group had taken over his mind like this before; every decision he had made, every thought he had, every emotion he felt was linked back to Rick's group. And he hated it. He hated how he almost had a morbid fixation with the people of Alexandria. Why were these mere weaklings so interesting to him? He was above them in every way possible, but they were still rooted in his conscience.

"This feeling," he thought, "It's almost stranger to me. A familiar and unwelcome guest that consumes my every waking moment."

He could sense that The Saviors were worrying about their leader. He heard their whispers, he saw their glances, he could practically read their minds about what type of man he was turning into.

His wives were hardly around for him; he had to constantly search for them. Many times they would deny him and he couldn't do anything about it due to his "moral code."

The only one who was really around was Sherry, but even then he could feel the skepticism and terror radiating off her.

Even Dwight was pulling away from him. Negan guessed it might have been because he saw the bruises on Sherry. She made no attempt to hide them; she wore them proudly like a badge of honor.

He needed to get ahold of the reins again. Why was he so disturbed by the Alexandrians? They were just a bunch of pansies after all. It was time to pay them another visit and show everyone that he was their protector.

* * *

When Carl heard the sound of tires pull up the gate, he thought it was none other than his dad. To his anger, it was none other than Negan.

"What do you want, Negan?" Carl scowled, opening the gate. The others were looking on, fearfully and angrily. They allowed Carl to speak, as Negan seemed to enjoy his company.

"You are just adorable!" Negan grinned as he climbed out of the single truck he brought. Dwight climbed out of the other side, looking puzzled at the fact they only brought one vehicle and were not going to take their usual demand.

"And that's not any way to treat your guest, kid," Negan towered over the boy.

"You are not our guest," Carl tried looking tougher. "You're just a small inconvenience."

"Ohh! Such big words for such a small man," Negan chuckled darkly. "I'm here for your daddy. Why isn't he out here to welcome me?"

Carl froze. Shit, he had to think fast. "He's out on a supply run. For you. He should be back soon though."

"Ah, I'll just have to wait for him here then. You are such a bad host, not offering me anything to drink," Negan shook his head disapprovingly. "I left you some powered lemonade, the good kind. Make some for Dwight and me."

"No, I'm not your butler," Carl retorted, irritated.

"I did not just hear that come out of your smart mouth," Negan flipped Lucille in his hand. Carl continued staring him down.

"I showed you mercy, kid. I could've made you blind, leaving you to smell your way to the kitchen."

"And we could have killed you... leaving you to choke on your own blood and spit," Carl was not going to give in. "In fact, you should just take that bat and shove it up your ass before we kill you. It'll be a whole lot cleaner."

Dwight stared in awe at this boy, shocked at how he effortlessly held his ground and how stupidly he said all that. Someone might be hurt for the kid's recklessness- or killed. Dwight hoped it wouldn't come to that. He wouldn't admit it, but what the boy had just said earned Dwight's respect. Yet, he tackled the boy to the ground for his insults.

"Dwight! Calm the hell down!" Negan shouted. "Get the boy back up on his feet." Dwight followed orders, pulling Carl back up.

"Make. Me. Some. Damn. Lemonade," Negan pointed Lucille right in front of Carl's face. Carl nodded his head with a frown, turning around towards his house with Negan and Dwight behind him.

Dwight sat in the living room uncomfortably while Negan watched over Carl prepare the lemonade. Carl wanted to tell Negan to go away, he was creeping him out the way he was just hovering over him. But his logic decided against it, something told him he wasn't going to get off easy with what he pulled earlier.

"You need to take that crap off your face," Negan spoke. Carl looked at him, hoping he didn't mean the bandage. Negan looked at him expectedly, growing impatient as Carl continued looking at him.

"Did I stutter?! Take it off!" Negan yelled. "Or better yet, I'll get Dwight to hold you down and I'll rip it off myself!"

Carl lowered his head in defeat, slowly unwrapping the bandage. Negan leered at him, while Dwight felt nauseous.

"That is disgusting! No wonder you cover it! You look hideous!" Negan cheered. Carl felt so ashamed, letting this demon see his vulnerability. Dwight looked away, wondering how Negan could get off to something like this.

"Can I touch it?" Negan whispered excitedly. Dwight wanted to vomit at this suggestion; this was beyond creepy and sadistic. Tears fell from Carl's eye, realizing that he really was at the mercy of Negan. He was not strong, he didn't intimidate him, he could never win against him.

"Damn... Kid...Negan's voice dropped. "I didn't mean to make you cry..." Negan sighed. "It's hard to remember that you're just a kid sometimes." His face turned into one of sadness.

Carl looked at him in disgust, wondering how Negan would actually think that Carl believed he actually cared. That he actually felt sympathy.

Dwight stood up and walked over to the counter. "Where is my lemonade? I've been waiting too damn long for it."

"Here," Carl shoved a glass at the man. "And here's yours." He shoved another glass at Negan. Carl started to wrap his face again, while Negan and Dwight drank their lemonade.

"Man, this is some good lemonade!" Negan exclaimed. Dwight nodded in agreement.

Carl stayed silent, feeling his rage growing in him. Suddenly, the sound of a baby crying broke the silence. Carl started panicking, knowing that Negan would want to see what was going on.

Carl immediately rushed off towards the upstairs nursery, leaving the two men behind. They followed him, curious as to why the tiny child was crying.

"Shh. It's okay, Judith," He rocked his sister. "What's wrong? Are you hungry?" He turned around in horror to see the men standing in the doorway.

"Isn't she precious?" Negan went over to Carl and took her from Carl's cold hands. "I've always wanted a child. Being a father has always been one of my dreams." He cooed at Judith who looked up at him with big eyes. "I know Sherry's wanted to be a mother for a while. Maybe she can give me a child" He grinned at Judith. Dwight's mouth dropped, appalled at this. "If I screw her enough that is."

"How can you even talk about being a father when you killed a child!?" Carl screamed. "You took away a man's chance of being a dad!"

"Your damn screaming is scaring her," Negan started rocking Judith, who started crying again. "What are you even talking about? I didn't kill any child...Wait, are you talking about that Asian? His wife? She was..." Negan's voice dropped low again. He sunk into the chair beside the crib, startled with this revelation.

"Pregnant," Dwight finished for him. Carl looked at the men with pure hate. "Yes. We were on our way to get her to a doctor," he confirmed.

The dam had finally broken for Dwight. That was the final straw for him. He could no longer blindly follow this tyrant after knowing what he had done. What he does. What he says. What he thinks. Everything. It was all too much. He had never wanted to hit Negan with Lucille as much as he did right now. Even when he saw Sherry kissing him. Even when his face was burned with an iron. He vividly imagined striking Negan with the bat he carried, savoring each gruesome detail.

"Wow... I didn't know..." Negan continued soothing the baby.

"Would it have mattered if you did?" Carl scoffed. "Now I'm going to get Judith something to eat if you don't mind."

Once Carl exited, Dwight asked, "Are we taking anything, sir?"

"Take whatever you want, Dwight. I don't care," Negan responded grumpily. Dwight left and went downstairs to the kitchen. Carl glared at him as he opened some baby food jars.

"Kid, the man, the Asian one, is he Japanese or Chinese or what?" Dwight asked, this question confusing the hell out of Carl.

"What?" Carl narrowed his eye.

"Just answer the question," Dwight said impatiently.

"He's Korean," Carl responded.

"Now, I wasn't good at geography. But that's in East Asia right?" Dwight continued his weird questions.

"Yeah?" Carl looked on at Dwight in bewilderment.

"You said _east_ right?"

"Yesss," Carl became impatient by these stupid questions.

"Is he about _twenty_ years old? He looks pretty young."

"I.. I guess?" Carl started to go up the stairs.

"Where is he right now?" Dwight stopped him from climbing.

"He's on a run. A long one," Carl wanted to punch this annoying man.

"So several _miles_ from here? A young _twenty_ -something-year-old miles away from his home. That's dangerous."

"Whatever," Carl continued up the steps, while Dwight grabbed several useless utensils and the powdered lemonade before heading back to the nursery.

Rick and Aaron returned to see a truck parked outside, recognizing to belong to The Saviors. They immediately broke into a cold sweat, hiding the guns Ezekiel had provided under the seats. They took out the supplies and food they gathered and were gifted, carrying them.

"Michonne," Rick could barely breathe. "Is Negan here?" He asked as she approached the gate quickly.

"Yes, he's with Carl in the house," Michonne answered, relieved Rick and Aaron had returned safely. "He ordered him into there."

Rick handed her the supplies before running to his house. He fantasized over what Negan might be doing to his son... torturing him... bludgeoning him... or even worse... Rick pushed that last thought away, unable to comprehend the sheer horror of _that._

"Carl! CARL!" Rick busted into the house. He ran up the stairs, yelling. He was full of sweat when he reached the nursery, seeing Carl, Dwight, and Negan.

"Ca-" his voice caught in his throat when he saw Judith on Negan's lap.

"Shh, Rick. You'll make her cry," Negan grinned up at him. Carl looked at his dad in agony at this display.

"It's about time you came back. You better have brought me some neat shit," Negan handed the baby to her brother.

"Yes, Aaron and Michonne have it," Rick answered, still shaken.

"As long as it's better than Dwight's crap," Negan stood up exiting the room. "Who do you think you are with those spoons and forks? Chef Boyardee?"

Rick and Carl exchanged glances as they followed Negan and Dwight out.

Negan took the stuff happily from an enraged Michonne, before reminding them that he'd be back here soon enough. It was a good thing he visited Alexandria again. He needed an occasional reminder that he was still on the throne.

* * *

That night, Dwight laid awake, thinking about his betrayal. A part of him hoped that the kid was too dumb to figure out what he meant. But the other half of him, perhaps the burnt half, fantasized Negan's death over and over again. One thing was for certain, he would not shed a single tear if that fantasy became reality.

In Alexandria, Carl laid awake thinking over the day's events. What kept coming to his mind was Dwight's tirade of questions. He had noted how Dwight placed emphasis on certain words.

"East... Twenty... Miles..." Carl repeated over and over, desperately trying to make sense of this. "Twenty miles east," Carl whispered. These weren't random questions... but clues.

They were the keys to Negan's base.

* * *

Something unexpected happened the day after Glenn and Rosita's return. Virginia was blanketed in snow.

In Hilltop, Sasha watched from the outside as the snow gently fell to the white ground. It had been so long since she had witnessed snow; it brought back memories of her brother and how much he loved snow. She had always despised it, but enjoying from the comfort of her new office was peaceful. It was beautiful; a word she had not used in ages. She thought of her friends in Alexandria and what they were doing as she often did.

In The Kingdom, Shiva was burying her face and back in the snow, trying to eat it. Morgan and Ezekiel laughed at this silly sight. Morgan thought of his deceased family and how winters were rare for them in Georgia. He wondered if he should have gone with Rick back to Alexandria after everything that happened. But for now, he would enjoy the company of his new friends. It might be the last certainty of this world.

At The Sanctuary, Negan was cozying up with Sherry. He was kissing her, but her thoughts and eyes were elsewhere. She was looking out at the snow, thinking of her ex-husband.

"Baby, what's wrong?" Negan asked, sensing she was not into this as he was.

"Nothing," Sherry responded, kissing him in reassurance. He kissed her back with even more passion, enjoying the mood this snow was setting. Especially with the fireplace nearby.

In Alexandria, Glenn was walking through the snow by himself. He had received a strongly worded lecture the day before from Rick about leaving. This did bother him somewhat, seeing that Rick was understandably upset.

Glenn stopped beside a tree, leaning his back against it. What mainly bothered him were his actions against Oceanside. He could not stop thinking about how his actions mirrored Negan's. The intentions were different, but it all led to the same result.

He sighed, watching the snow fall around him. He felt as if what he was changing into Maggie would have hated- even feared. Yet everything he was doing was for her. Everything he had ever done was for her, never for him. If he knew that none of his actions mattered, he would have given up a long time ago.

"Glenn," a female voice whispered in the snowy air. He immediately looked around, trying to figure out who said that and from where.

"Glenn," it said again. He looked straight ahead, the snow now coming down hard. But he could still see a female figure in the distance.

"M-Maggie?" He cried out, frozen tears running down his face. The figure in response opened her arms out wide.

He couldn't control his sobs as he ran towards it. As he got closer, the figure started to resemble his wife more and more.

"Maggie, I-" He called out, but as he did he slipped. He fell hard onto the snow, reaching out to her as he did. He scrambled to his feet, but saw the figure slowly recede.

"NO! MAGGIE!" He shouted, reaching out again.

"Glenn?" a small voice came up behind him.

"Maggie!" He spun around in joy, only to see Enid. She looked at him curiously.

"It's only me," She grabbed onto his arm. "Come into the church. Rick is having a meeting." He allowed her to cling onto him. She seemed to find comfort with him and he didn't want to interrupt that. He didn't dare look back, scared he would see her again and he would run to her.

The snow continued to fall in Alexandria, the marker of a new season, an upcoming war, a new hardship, and eternal mourning.

But also the eraser of Glenn Rhee. 


	12. 열둘 We Will Rise

"They're screwing with the wrong people."

~Rick Grimes

"Is it a sin to hate someone?" A male voice asked Gabriel, who was manning the gate.

"No, not necessarily," Gabriel didn't bother to look at who asked this, knowing it was Spencer. "Thoughts are just thoughts. It's our actions that matter."

"I hate Rick," Spencer growled. "He shouldn't be in charge. My mother- she was in Congress- she inspired people. She brought out the good in people," He approached Gabriel, wiping snow off his jacket.

"Rick brought out the good in me," Gabriel turned towards the vexed man.

"By bullying you?" Spencer scoffed.

"By inspiring me," Gabriel chuckled. "He didn't just keep people alive. He brought us all together. He's not perfect, but he's a man who finds his way."

"Not everyone. My mother, my father, my brother. When he got here, they died," Spencer looked at the priest angrily.

"Or maybe other people didn't die because he got here," Gabriel responded.

"Or maybe we shouldn't have attacked that outpost!" Spencer raised his voice, trying to prove his point. "Maybe Maggie-"

"No, we can't think like that. We're here now. We have to look towards the future," Gabriel interrupted, tired of Spencer's talk.

"What future? There's no future with him in charge," Spencer shook his head. "Maggie and Daryl should have come back," His voice dropped low as he said this. "Not Rick. That would have been the best thing for all of us."

Gabriel's face contorted into a grimace. "What you're saying doesn't make you a sinner. But it does make you a tremendous shit."

Spencer looked at Gabriel in disbelief, who was wearing a smirk with pride.

"Open the gate," Spencer demanded.

"No. You cannot leave without clearance from Rick."

"I don't give a shit about what Rick says. Open the gate." But Gabriel refused to.

"I have to go scavenge for supplies and food. Am I the only one who understands that this is what Rick has doomed us to? No one is taking this seriously." Spencer was practically in Gabriel's face. "Now open it or I'll do it myself."

"Go ahead then. I won't stop you. But I will not allow you to take a car," Gabriel said, frustrating Spencer even more. Spencer roughly opened it, leaving the city without another word.

Gabriel shut the gate, sighing at Spencer's foolishness. He remembered when he used to be that way, when he was blinded by his pride and stupidity. But then God revealed to him what type of man Rick was and his common sense prevailed.

Eugene approached the priest, saying, "We all need to go to the church. Rick is having a meeting." Gabriel nodded, unsure if he should mention what Spencer had done. The men walked over to the church together, being the last ones to arrive.

Glenn was seated in the front row, watching Rick wearily. Rick was trying to gather his thoughts for what he was about to say to his people. Abraham was seated next to Glenn, his mind preoccupied with Sasha.

"Alright," Rick spoke up, silencing everyone with his gruff voice. "Several things have come up in the past days. Glenn has already told you about Sasha and Hilltop. I was able to secure an alliance with The Kingdom. Their leader has given us some guns, so we're not completely defenseless. We have a total of seven guns, counting the ones Glenn and Rosita brought back from Oceanside."

Rosita looked over at Glenn from across with a hardened expression. Glenn averted his eyes from hers, not brave enough to face her glare.

"That is still not enough to win a war. I don't know how much of a weaponry Hilltop has..." Rick trailed off, before Eugene raised his hand.

"I have an announcement to make. I was able to make a bullet," He stated. Rosita turned her glare from Glenn to Eugene, staring at him in awe.

"That's great news, Eugene. We're going to need more of those for this. You think you can make some more for these specific guns?" Rick asked, with a glimmer of hope.

"Of course," Eugene answered. "I apologize on changing the subject, but I noticed not everyone is here." People looked around, trying to figure out who was missing.

Gabriel, unable to keep his silence, voiced what had happened to Spencer. "Spencer left earlier."

"Are you serious?" Rosita was beyond irritated.

"I cannot stress this enough. No one is allowed to leave unless I say so!" Rick had had enough of people leaving Alexandria. "If you all leave, and something happens, we will not go out looking for you."

Glenn agreed with Rick on this wholeheartedly. The last time people had left unknowingly it had cost them gravely. He knew he had broken this rule, but he had never expected people to go looking for him. He did not want them to.

"Now, we have just received a valuable piece of information. Carl has found out where The Saviors' base is. We don't have an exact location, but it is not too far from here apparently," Rick continued.

"We'll need to scout it," Abraham voiced his thoughts. "That's what went wrong with the outpost. For all we know, there could be more outposts." Everyone remained quiet at this recognition, knowing Abraham brought up a good point. The satellite outpost had not been scouted, which proved to be a deadly mistake.

"Yeah, we will need to do that," Rick ran his hand over his five o' clock shadow. "I don't know how we would be able to scout it without being noticed though..."

"When Negan comes back here, someone should leave to scout it. It would be a lot safer," Abraham was already beginning to formulate a plan. "We need to plan several things before we march to war. We need bullets, more guns, a layout of the building and if there are other outposts, amount of Saviors, communication between Hilltop and The Kingdom, and how we will attack the base."

"The good thing is we have other weapons," Michonne gestured with her katana. "Once we know the layout of the building, we could take over their armory and claim our weapons back."

"For this, everyone will need to step up and do their part. No running away, no hesitance. We will see this through," Rick reminded the Alexandrians, seeing their worried faces.

"We should assign roles to all of these parts," Glenn said. "That will make it easier to know who should be leaving. Eugene is making bullets. I could scout the base," he volunteered. Seeing that no one was going to take upon this duty, Rick agreed to Glenn's request.

"You have always volunteered to do the most dangerous jobs, Glenn," Rick realized.

"Maggie called me walker bait for a reason," Glenn responded sadly.

"How will you get the layout?" Rosita questioned skeptically. Glenn had no reasonable answer for this.

"If I have to sneak in, I will," Glenn replied darkly. "I will do whatever I must if it means we will win."

"No," Rick cut in. "We can get the layout another way."

"How, Rick?" Glenn grilled him. "I would love to know what another way there is!" Rick looked surprised at his friend's outburst.

"Glenn, you will be captured if you sneak in. And we can't afford to rescue you right now if that happens," Rick replied tensely.

"I'll go to The Kingdom once we have everything ready," Michonne changed the topic before things spiraled out of control.

"And I can go to Hilltop to visit Sasha. I'm sure she misses me." Abraham grinned.

"I can scavenge for guns," Aaron offered. One by one, the citizens started to volunteer for different duties. For once in a long time, everyone was coming together. Rick expressed his gratitude to each of them, acknowledging that they were all facing certain death for doing this. But in the back of his mind, something told him Glenn was pulling away from Alexandria.

* * *

Meanwhile, Spencer had been able to catch the attention of a female Savior, who pulled over to see what he wanted.

"What are you doing out here by yourself?" She questioned flirtatiously.

"I want to talk to Negan," He smiled at her. He had been preparing for his moment with Negan, speaking in front of a mirror to rehearse what he would say.

"And what do you want to talk to him about?" She kept going with her flirtation.

"There's an issue at Alexandria he needs to know about," He stood up taller, trying to make himself look more attractive.

"Get in and I'll take you to him. Maybe after you talk to him, _we_ can meet together," She grinned.

"Maybe," Spencer answered as he climbed in.

All the way over to the base, the woman and Spencer continued their teasing. The woman was trying to get with him, while Spencer was just trying to stay on her good side.

When they pulled up to the factory, Spencer's eyes widened at how huge it was. This fueled his belief that Rick had screwed up royally.

"Negan's this way," She hopped out of the car with Spencer in tow. The other Saviors gave him strange and menacing looks, causing Spencer to gulp. Maybe this was a bad idea...

No. He couldn't think that way. He had to believe in himself just like his mom did.

They walked up several flights of stairs to reach Negan's room. The woman knocked on his door, saying: "Negan. There's a man from Alexandria who wants to see you."

The door immediately swung open, revealing a cheerful Negan.

"Hi. My name's Spencer. We haven't officially met," Spencer said warmly.

"Hi, Spencer! Come on in!" Negan motioned him inside. Spencer walked into the room, which was luxurious. Compared to the rest of the compound, this room did not fit in a factory. The woman waved bye to Spencer before leaving the pair.

"I brought you a bottle of whiskey," Spencer opened up his backpack, handing over the bottle to Negan.

"Wow! You didn't have to!" Negan started pouring them a glass. "Thank you, Spencer. You don't know how much this means to me." He handed the glass to Spencer and clinked their glasses together. "Sit down, sit down. You are my guest here. I know my house is not as grand as Alexandria. It doesn't have running water or anything like that, but I want to make you feel as comfortable as possible."

"Thanks," Spencer sat down. "Speaking of Alexandria, that's what I wanted to talk to you about. That's why I'm here. Alexandria used to be a safe place. But once Rick arrived... people were killed. My mom, dad, brother. I lost them because of him. Look, I don't agree with your ways. But I get it. You're creating a system. Rick doesn't. He has a history of not being able to work with others."

Negan listened to this intently. "So ever since Rick entered the picture, you became an orphan?" Spencer nodded his head.

"My mom used to be the leader. If I was in charge, you wouldn't have any problems. I'm the only one who gets it now," Spencer continued.

"So what are you saying? You want me to kill him so you'll be in charge?" Negan raised his eyebrow.

"That would be the best option for all of us," Spencer took a sip from his glass. "Rick will eventually cause problems for you."

"Rick is not in charge though. I am. So what's your point?"

"He will want to retake that power. Just like he took it from my mom," Spencer firmly said.

"This pisses me off! I'm going to go to Alexandria right now and put an end to this," Negan jumped to his feet. Spencer leapt to his feet as well, following Negan out the door.

"Yes, Rick needs to be stopped," Spencer said, causing Negan to stop.

"You have given me a lot of think about, Spencer. Like how Rick threatened to kill me... how he hates my guts. Yet he swallows that hatred to haul ass for me so I don't kill any of your people. That takes guts." Negan looked at Spencer intensely. "Then I think about you. A guy who sneaks over to my base just to convince me to kill Rick so he could take over. Why not just kill Rick yourself? I'll tell you why," He leaned in close to Spencer. "Cause you got no guts."

"And I was beginning to consider you my best friend," Negan said as he stabbed Spencer in the stomach. Spencer cried out, but Negan continued slashing at him.

"Looks like you did have guts after all!" Negan exclaimed as looked down at the dying Spencer. "They were in you the whole time!"

"Someone clean this mess up!" He yelled at the group surrounding them. "And someone bring me a fresh shirt. I can't show up to Alexandria looking like a bloody mess," He ordered as he stabbed Spencer again; this time to prevent him from reanimating.

"Sir, there's been another runaway," Fat Joey approached Negan. "It's Mark."

Negan rolled his eyes at this news. "Dwight! Get over here!"

Dwight appeared suddenly, his appearance more ragged than usual. There were dark circles under his eyes, looking like he hadn't slept in days.

"We have another escapee apparently," Negan explained. "Mark couldn't deal with his new scar and decided to go AWOL."

"I'll go look for him," Dwight answered tiredly. Negan looked unimpressed at him, but didn't say anything.

"Where is my damn shirt?! I asked for that a minute ago!" A redheaded woman rapidly hurried over to him, handing him a new shirt. He snatched it from her, walking out to go change. But not before saying:

"The rest of you, we're paying Alexandria another unexpected visit. Get the trucks ready. And for God's sake, someone pick up that body! He can't stay here..." Negan remarked, chuckling darkly. "...He is an Alexandrian after all..."


	13. 열셋 We Will Win

"Go back while you can. You know I did. Whatever he's done to you, there's more. There's always more."

~Sherry

Glenn was pacing atop the wall when he heard the trucks pull up to Alexandria. "The Saviors are back!" He called out to the citizens who were doing their normal activities. They immediately stopped and rushed over to the gate.

He glared down at Negan, who simply waved at him gleefully.

"It seems like you're here more than you are at your own base," Glenn acknowledged.

"What can I say? Alexandria is like a vacation!" Negan gestured at the city. "And can I just say that I nearly didn't recognize you without the mustache and beard? You look like a kid!" Glenn frowned, while the other Saviors climbed out of their vehicles, growing impatient of getting kept out of the city. Two of them were carrying something in a garbage bag, leaving Glenn curious to what it was.

Aaron grudgingly opened the gate for Negan and his men, and as soon as Negan stepped foot in Alexandria the two Saviors dropped the bag. Spencer's gutted body came tumbling out, immediately prompting the screams and gasps from several Alexandrians.

Rosita stared down in horror and anger at the body; hot tears already forming in her eyes. Rick, who came running up to the scene, felt a surge of rage threaten to spill over. Glenn leaned on to the railing beside the wall for support, feeling as if he was about to jump down and strangle Negan right then and there.

"Why are you all looking at me like that?" Negan couldn't comprehend their emotions, only expecting gratitude and praise. "I saved you," He walked up to Rick. "He came to me to convince me to kill you. He wanted to overthrow you."

Rick could only look back at Negan in anger, unable to find any words to say anything.

"Aren't you going to thank me? I could have listened to him, but instead I saw him for the weasel he really was!"

Everyone stayed silent, either sobbing or too in shock to speak. Rosita broke the silence with a vengeful scream, sprinting towards Negan with a blade. Everything seemed to move in slow motion as Rick turned his head towards her, yelling for her to stop. Negan raised his bat in defense. Rosita lunged at Negan before she was pinned down by a female Savior. The Savior wrestled the blade from her hand and held it above her face.

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" Negan exclaimed. "That was very rude of you! I just expect a simple thanks and you nearly cut me!"

"Go to hell!" Rosita squirmed. The female Savior pressed the blade on Rosita's cheek, drawing blood.

"Now I will get a thank you or I will tell Arat to scar that pretty little face of yours permanently," Negan leaned over Rosita. Arat pressed the knife deeper into Rosita. Abraham stepped to the front of the crowd, fists clenched in preparation. He was not going to allow this any longer; he would beat Negan to a pulp even if it meant he would be killed.

"Thank you," a voice said behind Negan. Everyone turned around to see it belonged to Glenn, climbing down from the wall. He had an unreadable expression on his face as he approached Negan. He stood up straight against him, not flinching at all. Arat climbed off of Rosita, the latter wiping the blood off of her face.

"Damn right!" Negan gestured excitedly. "But I'm not going to let that go unpunished. We're going to take even more than what was agreed on."

"Negan, no, please," Rick started to crack again. "We're starving here."

"Rick, it's okay," Glenn forced a smile. "I'll go scavenge. I was supposed to go anyway." Rick looked at Glenn, instantly realizing what he was about to do.

"See? The boy gets it! He knows the value of hard work," Negan placed Lucille by his shoulder, walking off to Rick's house. "Now where is little Judith? I'm sure she missed me!" Glenn's smile dropped as he nodded at Rick. Rick inhaled, taking a leap of faith with this plan.

* * *

"You can't leave again," Enid pleaded quietly.

"I have to," Glenn responded as he saddled the horse from The Kingdom.

"You keep leaving. The first time I understood. But these last times...it's too dangerous. What if you don't come back? Rick won't do anything-"

"I know. So don't come looking for me if I don't come back. You understand, Enid?"

"You know I can't promise that," She gripped onto his wrist.

"You have to," Glenn looked down at her sadly.

"What's going on over here?" A Savior approached the pair, the same Savior who was bothering Enid the last time. Enid instantly backed away from Glenn, saying: "Nothing." Glenn narrowed his eyes at the man.

"It looked like you two were getting too cozy," The Savior leered at Enid.

"We were just talking," Enid held her ground. The Savior stroked Enid's hair, causing her to shudder.

"Don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you... But Negan did say we could take anything we wanted..." He grabbed onto her, causing her to scream and fight. Glenn didn't hesitate in tackling the Savior and punching him furiously.

However, The Savior was too large and strong and threw Glenn off of him. Glenn hit the ground with a groan as two more Saviors came running over to see what was happening.

"He's getting in the way!" The first Savior growled. The three of them stalked over to him, but not before Enid jumped onto one of them, scratching and clawing madly. The other two started kicking Glenn, but Negan immediately arrived, halting their beating.

"What the hell is going on?!"

"The man interfered with my plans," The first Savior said. Glenn stood up, clutching his ribs. "Y-your plans w-were to m-molest a girl."

"Is that true?" Negan asked the infuriated Enid.

"Yeah. He wanted to take me," she answered.

"I am so sorry. I am strictly against rape. And you know that!" Negan turned his anger towards the would-be rapist, who began shaking.

"N-Negan, I d-didn't" But the bat collided with the man's skull before he could finish his sentence. Negan continued bashing the man with Lucille until he was officially dead. Rick and the group looked on in horror, memories of what happened to Daryl and Maggie flooding back to them.

"I apologize for my men's behavior," Negan told Rick once he had finished. "The Saviors are supposed to rebuild civilization. And we can't accomplish that goal if my men are attempting to rape women."

Rick's skin was pale and his blue eyes wide as he stared at the mess in front of him.

"T-Thank you."

* * *

Glenn was in pain as he rode out of the city. He had a little trouble breathing, but he was going to follow through on his mission. He zipped open his backpack, which did not have his bats, and pulled out a surgical mask. He placed it over his lower face; a skeletal jaw covering his nose and mouth.

It would be a while before he reached the base and he was careful to avoid any walkers. He noted as he passed them that they were severely decayed, barely able to walk anymore.

His mind wandered off to Maggie, as it often did. He thought about how he first met her while she was on horseback. He thought about how she would probably laugh at him right now if she saw how incorrect his form was on the horse. He remembered how he compared her to Zorro.

He was so deep in thought he didn't notice was approaching a tall factory. It wasn't until he heard the walkers coming from outside the factory did he come to his senses. He took a right into the wood, jumping off the horse. He clutched his chest again, hurting all over.

"St-stay here," Glenn told the horse, who only blinked in response. He rubbed its mane gently, before sneaking off.

He crept low in the brush, watching the factory. Was this the place? He had followed the directions Rick gave. He had gotten them from Carl, who somehow got them from Dwight? He wasn't sure how or why. Rick intentionally left those details out.

There wasn't much movement in the factory. Only from the walkers who were roaming inside the chain link fence. There were hardly any vehicles left either; most of The Saviors appeared to be in Alexandria.

He couldn't get over the scale of the place. It was enormous. It _would_ take a lot of manpower to overrun this place.

Glenn heard the sound of footsteps approaching; he reached into his pocket and pulled out a large blade, aiming it at the person behind him. Only to be met with a crossbow pointed at his face.

"You sure do suck at sneaking around," Dwight sneered. "This is the second time I've caught you."

"Well, it's not like I'm a ninja or anything," Glenn shrugged, handing Dwight the knife.

"No kidding. I was just leaving the base when I saw your horse," He gestured to the horse, who neighed behind him. "Let's go. And take off that ridiculous mask."

Glenn pulled the mask down and was led by Dwight into the base. He was right, there were not that many Saviors in the compound.

But there were only about thirty Saviors in Alexandria- Negan's group couldn't have been this small, could it?

There was the outpost they attacked, plus the group that ambushed Daryl, plus some of the Saviors Carol killed. But there had to be more... Negan wouldn't be calm after losing so many men if there weren't more of them...

"Hurry up," Dwight jabbed him in the back with the crossbow as they climbed the stairs. As soon as they reached a corner, Glenn ambushed an unsuspecting Dwight. He knocked him down and took off up the stairs, placing his mask back on him.

He heard Dwight calling and chasing after him, but this only pushed him to not stop even if his body threatened to give out.

He finally stopped running when the pain was unbearable and his breathing was rapid. The hall around him was spinning. He spotted a large door and rushed towards it, opening it roughly just as someone else did. He collided with the person, falling onto them. He found himself in an awkward position with a woman in a black dress. She looked up from under him with a fearful expression.

He rapidly got off of her, helping the woman to her feet as well before turning away.

"Wait! Who are you?" The woman asked, holding onto the door.

"Someone who needs to get the hell away from here," He answered, albeit muffled from his mask. At that moment, he heard someone running up the stairs. The woman could see the panic in the man's eyes. She knew he didn't belong here, he was here to do something bad.

She should be afraid of him, but she didn't get that feeling from him. He had even helped her up when he ran into her.

"Come in here," She pointed to the room. He looked at her for a moment, studying her intentions. But he quickly went into the room as she shut the door and locked it.

This wasn't what he was expecting at all. A posh parlor in a dirty factory. He looked around the room while the woman sat across from him, crossing her legs.

"Now who are you?" She asked gravely. "And what are you doing here?"

He took off his mask before answering. The woman was surprised to see how young he looked; he looked harmless even.

"I'm from Alexandria. I'm here to scout the place," He knew he should have kept quiet, but she did potentially save him... unless she led him into a trap. He hoped not or he was really screwed. "I'm not here to hurt anyone," He quickly added.

"Then I should just throw you outside. You shouldn't be here...Negan has zero tolerance for unwelcome guests," She tried making herself look more intimidating.

Glenn opened his mouth to protest, but instead a surge of pain caused him to clutch his torso.

"What's wrong?" The woman stood up.

"It's nothing. Just got a beating from your people today," He grimaced, hating how this had to happen now. "If you're going to throw me out, just tell me. I at least want a head start."

"He'll kill you when he gets back... Leave. Now. Before you end up like your friend," The woman moved closer to him.

"M-My friend?" Glenn gripped onto a nearby couch for support.

"Daryl," She whispered. Glenn felt his knees buckle, his strength giving out.

"I'm fine," He wheezed as the woman reached out to support him.

"L-Lie down," She helped him to the couch, cursing herself internally for aiding the enemy. She didn't know why she was doing this... maybe because she felt extreme guilt about Daryl. Maybe because she wanted to pay what he did forward.

As soon as Glenn lied down, he felt his fatigue overwhelm him.

"Oh..no...," He struggled as he felt himself be pulled into sleep.

Sherry watched him pitifully. He had no idea what he had gotten himself into, coming into the lion's den.

A knock was heard, startling Sherry. She looked down at Glenn worriedly before going over to the door, unlocking it. She opened it, only letting her head show to a curious Dwight.

"Sherry?" Dwight eyes widened. "What are you doing in here?"

"I just came for some alcohol. Did you want some?"

"No, I was just looking for someone. I came to see if he's in here..."

"No," Sherry answered smoothly. "I have been in here the whole time. And no one's come in here."

"Okay... Well, if you do see him tell me..."

"I will," Sherry gave Dwight a convincing smile.

"You want to have a smoke break later on?" He asked.

"Sure," Sherry continued smiling. He felt his heart ache at her warm smile, remembering how she hadn't smiled at him in the longest time. He felt... happy... for once because this smile was meant for him. He gave a small smile back before leaving.

Sherry shut the door, sighing. " More whiskey does sound good right now," She poured herself a glass, taking a long sip. Unknown to her, Glenn had woken up and was watching her.

"Why did you lie?" Glenn asked, causing Sherry to choke.

"W-What I-is it to y-you?" She said in-between coughs. Glenn rushed over to her, patting her back.

"Take another sip," He instructed. "Because you should have given me up right then. Your people hate my people. And the feeling's mutual."

"I don't hate your people," was all she said. Glenn looked at her strangely.

"You are putting your life, my life, and other lives in danger by being here," Her voice dropped low.

"I don't care about Dwight. Let him suffer," Glenn sneered, walking away from her. "And I don't care about your people's lives either."

"I won't let more people get hurt because of you," She pulled out a knife attached to her thigh and pointed it at Glenn. "I have sacrificed too much so you could just ruin it! We can do this the easy way... Or the hard way. Which is it?"

Glenn looked at the knife and instantly knocked it from her hand. He quickly sped off from the room with Sherry struggling behind. He was still weak and she was wearing heels, making it difficult for both of them to run.

The sound of several pairs of heels were approaching them. Glenn and Sherry froze. Looking at the door closest to them, Glenn threw himself into the room and locked the door before Sherry had time to react. This room was decorated as extravagantly as the previous room he had just been in, albeit smaller. Instead of a sitting room, this was a bedroom. He pressed himself against the door, listening to what was happening outside.

"Hey, Sherry!" Amber waved at her with the other women in tow.

"Hi, Amber," Sherry answered breathlessly.

"What's wrong? You don't look well.." Amber became concerned.

"I'm feeling kind of sick. I was just going to my room to rest," Sherry looked at the room Glenn had just entered.

"Oh, okay. We were just heading to the parlor for a drink. We're enjoying this atmosphere without Negan here," Amber sighed with ease. "But yeah, you should rest, Sherry. Once Negan arrives, he's going to expect us to be in our best shape."

"I know, seeing that he expects us to be wearing these dresses when he comes back," Sherry sighed.

"I thought being one of his wives would make life easier... but it's just as demanding," Amber stated. Sherry nodded her head in response while the other girls looked on sadly. The girls wished Sherry well before entering the parlor, leaving Sherry to stand alone outside of her room.

She frowned, knocking on her door. "Can you please let me in?"

"Not unless you vow to not turn me into Dwight or anyone else," Glenn answered from the other side.

"Fine." The sound of the lock being turned was heard.

Sherry entered her room to see Glenn sitting on the floor angrily. "You're his wife?!"

"Yes..." Sherry looked down at him confused as to why he was so angry.

"That man should never be allowed to have a wife! HIM! DWIGHT! ANY MALE SAVIOR!" Glenn rose up, cornering Sherry.

"Maybe I should just kill you... and all the other women in the parlor...Then I could show him what it feels like to lose a wife," Glenn raised his hands to Sherry's throat. But he dropped them as he looked into her frightened eyes, turning away towards the bed.

"N-Negan doesn't kill women... He doesn't even beat us," Sherry put her cold hand to her neck.

"No? He managed to do both of those with Maggie!" Glenn turned his head towards her; his eyes glowing with rage. "He denied her chance to go to the doctor. To live. Instead, he wanted to play a stupid game that ended with my wife and friend dead!"

Sherry carefully approached the seething man, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Tell me about her." She gestured for him to sit beside her, hoping to calm him down. But she also wanted to hear his story, something that had been hidden from her. A story that connected the vastly different pair.

Glenn sat on the bed, looking down at his boots. "She was a farm girl. I first met her when she was on a horse. She had short, brown hair. And her eyes... they were green and full of life, so beautiful compared to my brown ones. He accent... she had such a cute Southern accent," Tears were rolling down his face as he recalled everything he loved about Maggie. "We started a relationship right away on her dad's farm. Then, we were forced to move somewhere else. A prison. We got married there, I even gave her a ring. We were separated for a while, well, the whole group was. But we searched for each other and we eventually found one another. We always did..." He sniffed.

Sherry was impacted by this deeply. She did not even know this man or his wife, but she knew he truly loved her.

"Each time I lost her, she would always search for me. She always believed I would find her. She never gave up that hope. We decided to become parents. At first, being a father terrified me. I didn't want kids in this world. But she convinced me that I would be a good father," His voice was cracking. "When I saw her for the last time, she was sick. With our child... She was on her way to see a doctor, but Negan interfered. After seeing Daryl killed, it was too much for her. She went into shock or something and collapsed. I wanted to be there for her last moments, I knew she was dying. But Dwight kept me from that. He pinned me to the ground and I had to watch Negan hit her body so she wouldn't become a walker. He even expected thanks from that. Like he had done me a favor," Glenn's voice was dropping from low to high passionately. "Negan has destroyed my life and made sure I knew. He has only taunted me, insulted me, and threatened violence upon others because of my reaction to seeing my wife die." He was staring at her with eyes continuing to burn with rage. "So yes. Your people will be hurt because of me. They are at risk from my wrath. Because when we come knocking this place will become a graveyard."

Sherry could no longer face his stare, feeling so much guilt and anger and sorrow. "You have every right to." Glenn was surprised by this; he didn't think Sherry would agree with him.

"I was only terrified by Negan before you came here. But I realized there is something more frightening than a man who isn't afraid to kill. It's a man who isn't afraid to die," Sherry held herself.

Glenn studied her before he asked, "What did you sacrifice to Negan?"

"I used to be married to Dwight. We ran away to escape from Negan. I had stolen some insulin for my sister who was supposed to be married off to him. But she died, so we decided to go back," She shook her head. "Negan was going to kill Dwight, but I offered to marry Negan to spare him. He agreed to this, but not without burning Dwight with an iron as punishment. I know this is nowhere near as tragic as what you said...We have our lives."

"But you lost your future to Negan. You lost a spouse in a way. Dwight lost his wife and part of his face. You have to sleep with this psychopath, knowing what he did and what he's capable of," Glenn explained.

"I guess I also lost a friend. We had run into Daryl when we escaped and he had helped us. He could have killed us and some nights I think he should have. And how did we repay him? By stealing his bike and crossbow. Dwight later took his vest. I know that Dwight is responsible for a lot of this... He's become so much like Negan," Sherry sobbed. "And I probably have too."

"No, you haven't," Glenn placed his hand over hers. She wanted to move it away, but the comfort and warmth it gave her convinced her not to. "Even after everything that's happened, I still see the good in you, Sherry."

"How do you know my name?" Sherry pulled back her hand.

"I overheard when you were talking to the other girls," He said sheepishly.

"It's funny really. I don't even know your name," Sherry wiped her eyes.

"It's Glenn. Glenn Rhee."

At that moment, a loud knock was heard on the door. Sherry rushed over to it, opening it up a bit to see it was Dwight once again.

"Dwight! What are you doing here?"

"Why are you hiding behind the door?" Dwight asked suspiciously.

"Oh, well, you're not supposed to be here in the first place..." Dwight, knowing his ex-wife, suspected she was hiding something... or someone in the room. He pushed her aside and saw his prisoner on her bed.

"The hell?!" Dwight looked to Sherry, who only tried explaining the situation.

"It's not what it looks like, Dwight! We're not-"

"You're not what? Screwing him?!"

"NO! Let me explain what-"

"It sure looks like you are!"

"We were just talking! It's not like that!"

"Wait until Negan hears about this!"

"You wouldn't!" Sherry glared at her ex.

"Oh, so you do admit you were cheating!"

"I'm not! All I did was hide a prisoner. And if you tell, you'll be in trouble for letting him escape!"

"I'll take that chance if it means I can stop seeing other men with my wife!"

"Ex-wife," Sherry's words were like a slap to him. Glenn only looked on in surprise at this feud, knowing he was the cause. He decided to speak before things got even more heated.

"You should know I wouldn't be sleeping with her after I just lost my wife," Glenn stood in front of Dwight. Dwight backed down at this, feeling the guilt beginning to consume again.

"Dwight, would you really rat me out to Negan?" Sherry looked at him with tearful eyes.

"No. Even if you were with him," He narrowed his eyes at Glenn. "I would just try to live with it like I am now." He thought about this for a moment. "You don't know how many times I've wanted to take that bat of his and beat him with it after seeing him kissing you, touching you... the bruises on you."

Glenn instantly snapped his head in Sherry's direction. "I thought you said he didn't beat you."

"He didn't beat me... he's just been rough in bed lately..." She answered.

"What else have you told him?" Dwight's jealousy was starting to control his clarity.

"I told him everything. Just like he told me everything," Her eyes darkened at this. "Why?" Was all she asked, and Dwight knew what she meant by this.

"It was a reflex. He couldn't interfere with what was happening! I don't know, Sherry! Maybe because if I didn't hold him down I would be killed or you would!" Dwight gripped Sherry tightly. "Damn it! I had to watch that, too! And all I could see was your body! I still see their bodies, lying there bloody and beaten. I still hear his cries in my sleep! I still feel the iron! I still see you in my dreams and when I have to wake up and see you with Negan! I am still haunted by everything I've caused and seen!" He broke down in her arms. "I've tried making things right..." He turned towards an unsympathetic Glenn. "I'm the reason why you found this place."

Glenn's jaw dropped, realizing that he was the one who had provided this information. Dwight would have been the last person he would have thought would betray Negan. He seemed so obedient, almost like a lapdog.

Sherry let Dwight cry into her, comforting him. She had never known Dwight had felt this way, similar to how she felt.

"I tried, too," Sherry soothed him while looking at Glenn. Glenn looked at the pair, feeling a deeper sense of loss than he usually did. The hole in his heart was enormous right now as he watched the couple embrace.

Dwight had composed himself and held Sherry for a few seconds, knowing this might be the last time he would be able to. Negan had assumed Dwight was a dumb man, but he was, in fact, the opposite. He didn't need to ask why Glenn was here; he understood that this meant a full-on attack was imminent if the Alexandrian had used this information to his full extent.

"D-Does this mean... you will help us?" Glenn spoke up. He needed their full loyalty if it meant they could pull this off.

Sherry and Dwight exchanged glances, thinking this over. They had already helped the man and did not owe him anything else. There was also the strong chance of them failing and everyone being killed...or worse.

"We can't do this without you... We need someone on the inside," Glenn didn't want to beg, but he was desperate. "You both can make this right again...Dwight, I know you killed Denise and were with Negan when he killed Maggie and Daryl... And I don't think I'll forgive you for that...But I have done awful things that I'm trying to atone for. We're not too far gone." He stuck out his hand towards Dwight as a sign of peace.

Dwight stared at his hand, glancing at Sherry as if asking what he should do. Sherry nodded her head slowly. Dwight took Glenn's hand, feeling a sense of tranquility as he did. He couldn't explain it, but for the first time since living under Negan's reign he felt as if things would be alright.

* * *

The three had spent the next hour planning as to how this would work. Glenn had told them that the only way they could win the war is if the Alexandrians got ahold of the armory and reclaimed their guns and other weapons.

Dwight gave him a crude drawing of the layout of the factory, labeling where each area was. Sherry had told him when the attack comes she would lock the armory and have the key for herself since Dwight would be expected to fight.

"What about numbers?" Glenn questioned. "How many Saviors are there?"

"There are about fifty here..." Sherry trailed off, realizing how many Saviors there actually were.

"But there are five outposts. Including the one you all took out," Dwight finished for her. "That would be over one hundred and fifty Saviors combined. But there used to be over two hundred before you all showed up." Glenn couldn't help but smirk at that.

"Will your people be enough?" Sherry looked concerned.

"We've taken out several people with fewer numbers than what we have now," Glenn opened his pocket watch to see the time, then remembered it had stopped. "We have three communities on our side. Shit, I better go. Negan will soon be leaving Alexandria."

"How did he even let you leave?" Sherry asked.

"I told him I went on a supply run. And I didn't even get any supplies," Glenn realized.

"Just take some from here. Steal some of that bastard's supplies for a change," Sherry remarked, causing Dwight to look at her in surprise.

"But he'll know."

"We can always blame it on Fat Joseph," Sherry answered nonchalantly. "It's not like it's not true anyways."

"I'll go get them then. Meet me outside by the horse," Dwight exited, leaving Sherry and Glenn alone.

"I'm going to make sure no one is in the hallway," Sherry quickly left, checking to see no one was outside. She motioned for Glenn to follow her. She let him go first down the stairs, constantly checking to see if anyone had spotted them.

"Sherry!" A female voice called out to her. Sherry instantly recognized the high pitch tone to belong to Amber.

"Go!" Sherry anxiously whispered to Glenn. Glenn nodded and fled down the stairs, carefully avoiding the remaining Saviors.

Glenn was finally able to make it outside to see Dwight in the distance with the horse. He had Glenn's backpack in one hand and Daryl's crossbow in the other.

"Here," Dwight handed the backpack off to him.

"Why were you here instead of Alexandria?" Glenn suddenly asked as he climbed onto the horse.

"Had a mission to catch a runaway," He answered. "The supplies are in the backpack by the way."

"I'm guessing you didn't find him."

"No, not officially at least," Dwight squinted up at Glenn. "But that's between you and me. I found his corpse eaten by some walkers when I went to look. Nothing I could do about it then."

Sherry slowly approached the men, finding it difficult to walk over gravel in heels. "He wasn't seen by anyone right?"

"They were all too busy doing their jobs to care. No one ever pays attention around here anymore," Dwight replied to her.

"Well... I guess this is goodbye," Sherry smiled upwards beside her ex-husband.

"Yeah, until we see each other again in battle," Glenn sighed. Sherry surprised both men by reaching up and hugging Glenn.

"We'll see each other again when we're free," she said gently.

"I was wrong," He said as they pulled apart. "I want you both to live on." Dwight remained silent and stoic throughout this whole display.

Glenn instructed the horse to trot off, looking back at the somber couple as he left. Thinking that there were still words left unsaid after everything they had done for him, he turned the horse around and yelled:

"I promise you both the freedom you never had! I promise you the ending and future I'll never have! I promise... we will win!"

And with that, he disappeared off into the woods. 


	14. 열넷 The End of a World

"Well, look at that, dawn is breaking. It's a brand new day."

~ Negan

Sasha sighed as she put her head down on the polished desk. These past days had been very stressful for her. She let herself rest for once in Gregory's office, remembering when she had announced to the Hilltop residents she would be their leader...

 _The citizens looked at Sasha glumly as Jesus explained that Gregory had been killed and Sasha would now be in charge. He assured them he would be an advisor to her, something Sasha was grateful for due to the tense situation._

 _Jesus understood she didn't need any help, it wasn't like she couldn't handle things on her own. But she did need to know the ropes of how things worked here and of course how to handle The Saviors._

 _That issue was immediately asked by a citizen, which Jesus answered they would tell Simon and the rest of The Saviors that Gregory had killed himself. It's not like it would be out of character for the coward he was._

 _"But won't Simon be suspicious of a random woman in charge?" The citizen continued on._

 _Jesus opened his mouth to respond, but Sasha had already stepped forward with an answer of her own._

 _"Look, you all barely know who I am so I'm going to spare you all the sentiments of an inauguration speech. Your leader, Gregory, was a coward who only looked after himself. He didn't care about you as long as it meant his survival. He had been lying to you, so I am going to finally put an end to all that bullshit. He made a deal with my people from Alexandria to protect you all from the Saviors and take out Negan in exchange for food. To make a long story short, we failed. Negan cornered us and killed two of our people, the woman who proposed this deal and a man who had previously fought the Saviors. He killed them the same way he killed the teenage boy who lived here. I was a witness to this- I had to watch my friends be brutally murdered in front of their loved ones." Sasha paused._

 _"Jesus had hoped for our communities to live in peace. And that is still possible. But not with Negan alive. Not with Saviors. Or people like Gregory who threatened to turn my friend and me over to the Savior with a gun. My friend fought him and it ended with Gregory dead. I know you all are distrustful of me and I don't blame you. But I promise I will work alongside someone you do trust to ensure Negan will be defeated."_

 _Jesus applauded Sasha with the Hilltop Colonists slowly doing the same. "I was the one who saw behind Gregory's fake concern and proposed Sasha become the leader here. She genuinely cares, is highly intelligent, and has all the other qualities a great leader should have. Yes, Simon has seen Sasha before so he will figure out that our two groups know each other. Unless... when he comes I can 'pretend' I am the new leader. Just to be safe," He looked at Sasha curiously._

 _She knew this was a critical time and they needed to account for any variables. She nodded her head in agreement. He could be her stand-in as a leader, a figurehead of sorts while she was the one behind the scenes, pulling the strings._

 _"In order to win this war, we will need everyone's cooperation. You have mine and Jesus's completely. We are willing to die for this cause. I ask you all, are you? This will be a bloody and dirty fight with very high stakes. We cannot afford to fail, but we can only do that if everyone is willing to fight," Sasha said firmly. Everyone gazed at her for a while before raising their fists in the air. Sasha looked worriedly at Jesus, thinking they were refusing. However, Jesus's blue eyes brightened and his lips gave Sasha a reassuring smile as he nodded his head._

A hand nudged Sasha out of her daze, startling her.

"Sorry," Jesus grinned. "But there's something you need to see..." His tone suddenly turned serious. They walked out to the front walls; Jesus motioning for the gate to be opened.

Dozens upon dozens of women stood in front of the Hilltop Colony. All of them wore tattered clothes. All of them were full of soot, cuts, burns, and grime. The woman in the front stepped forward towards Sasha and Jesus.

"Is this Alexandria?"

Sasha shook her head, her wide eyes never leaving the women.

"This is Hilltop Colony," Jesus answered. "Who are you?"

"We... were from Oceanside. Now we're just wanderers," The woman responded.

"You're not part of The Saviors?" Sasha asked, unconvinced.

The other women tensed up, glares worn on their faces.

"No," the woman hissed. "That name has only brought us pain and death! We could never be affiliated with such evil!"

Sasha and Jesus were taken aback by this outburst. "Um, if you all want to come in you'll have to lay your weapons down," Sasha stuck her hand out. "We can talk inside."

"How can we trust you are not with The Saviors?" A young girl asked.

"We do work for them... But we are quickly trying to change that," Jesus replied gently.

"Please, just put down your weapons. We will not hurt you. We hate The Saviors as much as you do," Sasha pleaded. "I was originally from Alexandria, but now I am the leader here. Why were you even looking for it?"

"I guess you'll find out inside then," The woman responded. "Ladies, put your weapons down... For now."

* * *

Glenn had avoided the main road and arrived back in Alexandria long after Negan had left. He eagerly entered the city, calling everyone to a town meeting.

"I managed to sneak into Negan's base," He proudly stated much to everyone's shock.

"What?! Glenn, I told you not to!" Rick furiously approached him.

"I know. But Dwight captured me and I got to see the base," Glenn answered, his morale still high. If the people were originally surprised, this really knocked them off their feet.

"I would hardly call that sneaking into, boy," Abraham stated.

"That's not the point! Glen-Wha- How did you even get away?!" Rick continued shouting.

"Okay, let me start from the beginning. So I arrived at their base- which is a huge factory by the way. Dwight immediately took me prisoner, but I managed to sneak away." Glenn started, emphasizing his last words. "And I literally run into Dwight's wife- er- ex-wife since she's Negan's wife now, and she helped me out twice to avoid being caught. We talked about our lives and empathized with each other. We found out we were more alike than we were different. Dwight found me, but I convinced him to be our inside source. So now we have two people inside Negan's base who will fight alongside us!" Glenn smiled, as the citizens stared at him, all feeling overwhelmed by the turn of events.

"So it was all just cocktail hour between the three of you?" Abraham did not hold back on his sarcasm.

"It did start off that way..." Glenn dug into his pocket for the drawing. "But Dwight managed to come up with this for me. He's no Picasso, but this map should be alright. Sherry, the woman, said she would take hold of the armory when we attack." Rick, Abraham, and Michonne studied the map intently.

"I also found out The Saviors numbers. There are about 150 of them combined with their outposts. But at the factory there are fifty," Glenn explained.

"Glenn, I don't know how you did this, but this is unbelievable. You secured a big advantage for us," Rick praised, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"I am impressed!" Abraham got Glenn in a headlock and ruffled his hair.

"You're amazing, Glenn. You said you would, and you did," Michonne hugged him with a big smile on her face.

"Thank you- But I'm not great or anything," He responded modestly. "I'm just a supply boy..." He started pulling out the supplies Dwight gave him. "By the way, these are for us only. They were originally from Negan's supplies." This sent everyone into an uproar, laughing and cheering for once in the longest time.

As people looked to the future in hope, Glenn noticed something folded at the bottom of the backpack. He curiously lifted it up and unfolded it. As the design came into view, his hands started trembling. He sniffed, trying to hold back his tears as he recognized the familiar black vest.

Everyone turned their attention towards Glenn; their voices coming to a halt.

"I didn't even realize Dwight had taken off the vest," Glenn thought out loud. Rick put his hands over the angel wings, feeling a sense of warmth and nostalgia coming off of it.

"We have to win this. It's not just for us anymore," Rick said shakily as he stared at the vest of his best friend. "It's for Daryl. Maggie. Carol. Dwight. Sherry. Jesus. Ezekiel." Everyone nodded their head in agreement.

"Should we put it by his grave?" Glenn asked quietly. Rick remained silent for a while before answering.

"Yes, but not now. When we attack... I want to wear it."

* * *

"I am Netanya. I am the leader of these women. We used to live in a colony called Oceanside, but it was set on fire. I came looking for Alexandria because some people from there had found us. They tried to convince us to fight The Saviors, but we refused. Some of us had worked for The Saviors before and we know how vile they are. We went into hiding to escape them and we didn't want to be found," Netanya effortlessly explained. The other women were being treated for their injuries nearby.

"So you hoped to find Alexandria so you could join them?" Sasha furrowed her eyebrows.

"To be honest, no. I hoped to find it to seek vengeance," Netanya answered, alarming Jesus and Sasha. "We would have been fine if they hadn't come to us. At first, I believed they were the ones who burned our huts...Until we found the body."

"The body?" Sasha looked at Jesus filled with concern.

"The body of one of our women...Her head had been smashed in and there's only one person who's known to do that," Netanya's face grew darker. "Your people led Negan right to us!" She spat at Sasha. "My friends died because you all couldn't fight your own war! They would still be alive if it wasn't for you!" She stood up immediately, prompting Jesus to leap to his feet.

"Maybe," Sasha rose up. "But have you thought that even though you were living in the illusion of safety, you still were not safe? You lived in hiding, but he still found you. As long as Negan lives, you'll never be safe. You worked for him so you know firsthand that no matter how much you obey him and listen to him things still go wrong."

Netanya stayed silent at this, thinking Sasha's words over.

"You're welcome to stay here. But on the condition you fight Negan with us. You will not pursue your revenge against Alexandria," Sasha ordered.

"And if we don't fight this senseless war?" Netanya smirked.

"I'll remove you. With force, if I have to," Sasha narrowed her eyes.

"So it's either work for you or you're useless and get hurt?" The older woman sneered. "How ironic."

"We're offering you food, shelter, protection, and medical care. This is a fair exchange," Jesus glared, understanding the meaning behind her words.

"I suppose you believe you're _saving us_... and we owe you," Netanya's smirk didn't falter.

"I've been wanting to ask... Why are there just pure women with you? Where are the men?" Sasha questioned, her gaze locked with Netanya's.

"We kill any man who tries to join our group," Netanya wanted to know exactly what Sasha was getting at. "In this world, you can't take any chances."

Sasha nodded, content with the answer she received. She started to walk out of her office, heading over the infirmary. But not before she stated,

"You should clean the blood off your hands before you start pointing fingers."

* * *

"Were you able to pinpoint the outpost locations?" Eugene asked Glenn.

"Uh, no," Glenn sighed. "I can't believe I didn't ask for that." He ran his fingers through his hair.

"Well, that hurts the plan of attacking the outposts first then the main base..." Rick though out loud.

"We were going to attack the outposts first?" Glenn looked at Rick confused.

"Yes, to make sure no backup comes. Now we'll definitely need to make sure no one escapes the compound," Rick leaned on the table that the group had set up for brainstorming.

"I think it's better we attack the main compound then the smaller ones. If we kill Negan, we'll break their spirits. They'll have no one to follow, no one to look to for guidance and leadership," Glenn placed his hand on the map.

"I don't want to make a martyr of Negan," Rick stubbornly answered, unaware of the parallel he had just drawn to Negan.

"We won't. If The Saviors see that these scrawny little colonies could defeat their leader, they'll lose all willpower," Glenn's voice rose.

"Rick, he's right," Abraham stepped forward. "They only follow Negan out of fear. If they see he can't protect them, which he promises, they'll be crushed. Our biggest problem is getting to Negan."

"Okay," Rick finally agreed. "What about Dwight and Sherry? We need to emphasize how we cannot kill them. Sherry will hole up in the armory, right?"

Glenn nodded.

"Dwight will have to be in the fight against us, but no one can kill him. Understood?" Rick stressed. Everyone nodded their head in understanding.

"I have a time estimate of attacking in two weeks minimum. Four weeks maximum. We can't draw this out too long without Negan becoming suspicious. No more than four people can leave Alexandria on a daily basis to communicate between colonies. When too many people are gone, it brings attention," Rick clarified. "Eugene, will two weeks be enough for you to make bullets?"

"Yes. If not, I will go into overdrive," Eugene answered.

"Aaron, you will need to find as many guns as possible in a short amount of time," Rick instructed. "You and Eugene will need to communicate to know what types of bullets should be made." Rick thought deeply before going on. "I'll elaborate on the battle plan more when the attack draws closer. All I know right now is that we need to pick a spot where we all can meet the day of the attack. A spot away from the communities. We'll also need to plan who goes where and when they attack. I don't think a full-scale attack with everything we've got is smart. We send people in at different times. The most important things are to secure the armory and get Negan, which will be reserved for certain people. Finally, we need to inform the other communities of what has happened."

This moment felt surreal to all of them. They never imagined they would get this far in their war tactics. They were going into the belly of the beast and there was no turning back.

* * *

Michonne headed off towards The Kingdom, Abraham towards Hilltop, and Eugene and Aaron towards the nearby town where Eugene had accomplished making his first bullet.

The citizens watched as they went off, knowing that the end was near. Maybe for Negan, maybe for them, maybe for everyone.

As everyone walked off to start the mandatory training Rick had ordered, Rick and Carl were the last ones remaining by the wall. Carl had glared at Enid and Glenn as they went to train together, but Rick eased his anger by telling him to stay and watch the sunset with him. They watched it in complete silence, enjoying this rare moment of bonding.

"Hey, dad?" Carl looked up at his father. "When all of this is over, can... can we play a game of soccer?"

Rick was surprised by this question, but nonetheless smiled at his son. "Yes, we can play a game of soccer."

"I know it's a stupid thing to ask, but I just want a normal moment for once... I just want a life I'll never get...At least for a little while," Carl began to tear up.

Rick brought his son in for a hug, holding the son who had been forced to grow up too soon. He felt his own tears sting his eyes. He tried blinking them away, not wanting to let his son see him cry.

"I told you when you had gotten shot that I would show you the new world..." His grip tightened on Carl. "Trust in me... We'll play that game of soccer."


	15. 열다섯 You Will Die Here

"People die, Rick. It's what happens. Doesn't mean the rest doesn't happen."

~Negan

Judith did not even stir when a gentle hand stroked her hair. Glenn looked down sadly at the toddler, watching her sleep peacefully. He had not seen her in months, but now as the day of reckoning drew closer he felt as if he needed to visit her. He didn't need to do any deep soul searching to know that the reason he was so apprehensive of visiting her was that it would be salt to the wound in his heart.

This was not his child. His child was dead. This was the reality. This was his reality.

He sighed, reflecting on what had happened in the two weeks since he had arrived from Negan's base.

He had found out from Abraham what happened to the Oceanside group. It panged him to know he had been the cause of their misery, but he surprisingly didn't regret his actions. He knew their numbers would be necessary and maybe even what would help them win the war.

The women were highly skilled in defense and weaponry. They had managed to salvage several guns from their home and even crafted spears to aid them. One of the women, Michelle, had been nice enough and came to teach the Alexandrians how to use spears.

Abraham had also told them how The Saviors did not even question Gregory's death and Jesus's "leadership position" like Glenn predicted. Although Simon wondered why there were was suddenly an influx of women at Hilltop. Jesus had stated they were a nomadic group who had stumbled upon them. He was such a convincing liar with his charisma and ease that Simon fell for this. All the while this happened, Sasha made sure to stay out of sight.

Michonne came back with the news of how The Kingdom's citizens were heavily training under King Ezekiel's watch. Morgan had taken up the role of teaching them how to fight with staffs or spears. Shiva had taken an instant liking to Michonne and vice versa; after she had gotten over her shock of seeing the tiger. Ezekiel had asked for Michonne's help in training the citizens in swordsmanship since The Kingdom had an abundance of swords. It was named The Kingdom for a reason.

Aaron had worked tirelessly to collect guns on top of scavenging for other supplies that would sustain Alexandria and The Saviors. Granted, Rick would sometimes go to help, but he was really the one who took it upon himself to do this.

Another person working themselves into exhaustion was Eugene. He practically lived in the warehouse that he had found in order to produce the bullets. He would only stop to take breaks and then go back to manufacturing the bullets. In total, he had created over one hundred bullets.

Finally, Gabriel and Tara had pushed themselves to their limits in training. Gabriel wanted to be as strong as he was at the outpost times ten. Tara wanted to be on the level of Rosita's skill, she had to if she was going to fight. She also wanted to right the wrong she felt she caused to Oceanside. When the thoughts of how she had betrayed their community invaded her mind, it would only direct her rage into training and fuel her strength.

Glenn recalled how at training he encouraged people to put their 110% into this. He motivated them by praising what they had been doing right and correcting them on what they could do better. Tara had asked why he wasn't being like a drill sergeant a.k.a. Abraham with them. It was because of Maggie, he responded, she was one of the first people besides Rick who had not treated him like a tool. She never insulted him and brought out the best traits within him. This inspired everyone's desire to fight even more.

He rapidly left the nursery, his thoughts overwhelming him. He walked over to his house; his bedroom a mess with papers and pens. Many nights he would stay up until dawn, planning, and note taking for the upcoming battle. He wrote like his life depended on it and in a way it did. He felt as he was running out of time; the battle had arrived and his people's survival depended on it. He continued to write and think of every variable that could prevent their victory.

He collapsed on his bed, ignoring the permanent absence on the other side. He could almost feel her presence while he stared up at the ceiling all alone. He thought about the memories he shared with her and the ones he would never be able to share. He truly did not care if he died, there was a strong chance he would not survive the battle, but he needed to kill Negan before he did.

He would make sure to tell Rick that this was non-negotiable: He would be the one to drain Negan's life before him.

He wanted his image to be burned into Negan's brain as he smashed it to bits.

Glenn reached for a paper beside the nightstand, gripping it tightly in his hand. It detailed the spot each community would meet up in. Glenn had found a small waterfall on his way back to Alexandria from Negan's base and thought this would be the perfect meetup point. Rick had agreed.

He stood up and looked at the room he and Maggie had shared for perhaps the last time before heading out.

* * *

Several people were gathered in the graveyard when Glenn arrived. As expected, Rick was wearing Daryl's vest as he stood in front of his tombstone. Carl stood beside him, looking down quietly at the dirt. Rick knelt beside the grave, touching the dirt as he said, "I may soon be joining you here, brother. But for now...I will fight on. Like you would want us to."

Glenn decided to not interrupt this and went to his wife's grave.

"I will never stop searching for you..." He said softly. "One day... I will find you again."

Rick approached Glenn, but seemingly took no notice of the man since he said, "I'll look after him...like you did for me and my son. I will keep the rest of your family alive. I won't fail this time." Without a glance towards Glenn, he went to Carol's grave.

"Your story will be told. As long as we're here, you will live on."

A figure moved towards Maggie's grave and laid some flowers on it. Enid whispered something as Glenn watched her.

"You should stay here with Olivia and watch the kids," He stated.

"No way. This is not just your fight. It's all of ours," She replied.

"Enid, you could die," Glenn tried reasoning with her.

She paused at this. "Well, if I die, I'll die fighting with you. And that's good enough for me."

"I won't be able to protect yo-"

"I know how to take care of myself! Plus, you'll be the one who'll need my protection if you want to get to Negan," She interrupted. Before Glenn could ask how she knew he would be the one to kill Negan, Rick spoke to the citizens.

"This is the moment we've all been waiting for. We're going to head out after I finish preparing a few things. Michonne and The Kingdom will meet up with us at the waterfall. So will Abraham, Sasha, and Hilltop. I'll discuss the remaining plans once we get there. Now is the time for you all to say your goodbyes..." He lowered his head before walking off as did others.

The remaining people stocked their weapons into the vehicles loaned to them by The Kingdom and Hilltop. They did all of this in silence, knowing this might be the last moment they would spend together in Alexandria.

* * *

The road ahead was as somber and foreboding as the swirling, grey clouds above. For everyone en route to the waterfall, the feelings of sorrow and agitation were overwhelming.

The worn faces of the main group displayed uncertainty, nostalgia, and grief that had plagued them the past months.

They tightly held onto the memories of the ones they lost; the only remnants of a time gone by that comforted them.

They gave into their emotions for the time being, knowing they had to be set in their goal once they reached the base.

But for now, they remembered in vivid detail of the life they once had in Alexandria, not ready to let go of their last piece of humanity.

* * *

With the barrel pointed up towards the sky, Rick gritted his teeth as two loud gunshots rang through the chilly air. From behind him, people stepped out and surrounded him with similar bloodthirsty expressions. At the signal of the battle call, a large truck rammed into the chain link fence and easily knocked it down onto the ground.

As several surprised Saviors ran to the flattened fence, the back of the truck opened up quickly, glowing eyes and low growling clearly audible. Before the Saviors could react, their worst nightmare lunged at them, its claws and teeth sinking into soft flesh. Rick's lips curled into a smirk at the sweet sound of the chaos.

Off in the distance, a Savior who had been traveling between outpost and base watched this army surround the factory.

Panicking, the Savior made a U-turn back towards the outpost, but a bullet to his throat prevented that. He clutched his bleeding neck, scrambling to get out of the car.

He could only look in horror and pain as a man wearing a delighted grin stood before him with a metal bat and whispered in Korean,

"There's no mercy."


	16. 열여섯 This Day and Never Again Part 1

"Bet ya thought you were all going to grow old together, sitting around the table at Sunday dinner in the happily ever after. No... doesn't work like that Rick. Not anymore."

~Negan

An arm was flung across the yard, landing beside a frightened Negan.

"What the hell is going on?!" He shouted, running up towards the chaos in the front.

As in response, Shiva narrowed her eyes at the man and let out a fearsome roar before attacking again. Negan leapt out of the tiger's way, barely avoiding her claws. A Savior next to Negan raised his gun at the tiger, but was too slow before she bit into his throat.

"Get the hell outta here!" He shouted to the men nearby although they were way ahead of him. However, they did not get very far before they were shot down. Negan looked back to see where the gunfire was coming from and saw a smiling Rosita across the yard, waving at him.

More Saviors arrived with guns, trying to shoot the ferocious beast. But King Ezekiel and Michonne quickly intervened, jumping out of the truck and taking out the Saviors with their non-firearms weapons.

Negan stared in disbelief at this sight in front of him. He gripped Lucille tightly, realizing he was not carrying a gun with him. He glared angrily at Rick, who was firing at the Saviors intensely.  
Sensing that Negan was about to act on his impulses, Shiva hissed at him and eyed him dangerously.

Noticing that no one stood between him and the tiger, he ran as fast as he could.

* * *

At the first sound of gunfire, Sherry dropped what she was doing and ran to the armory. The previous days had been tense for her, knowing an attack was imminent.

She arrived and found the armory to be locked. She cried out in defeat, feeling foolish for not have been proactive about this.

Suddenly, a tall, brute Savior came up to her with something in his hand.

"Do you have the key?" She asked eagerly. He took one look at her before grunting in response, unlocking the armory doors.

"I know I look like I can't fight," She stated, rushing inside. The Savior ignored her, trying to find the ideal gun to use.

"Which is precisely the angle I'm going for," She finished her sentence as she ambushed the man by surprise, shooting him in the head.

She dropped her gun and struggled to barricade herself inside. She was not strong enough to move things in time and abandoned her original plan. She went outside with the key, locking the door from the outside.

It wasn't long before shouts were heard from the other side of the door. The sounds of bangs and crashes meant people were trying to bust the door down.

The armory wasn't a vault; the door would not hold forever. Sherry sighed, sinking down to the cold, hard floor. Her mind wandered to how long she would be in here before help came in the form of Dwight or Glenn.

That was if help came at all.

* * *

The walkers that were placed along the perimeters were taken down by either Rick, Rosita, or Morgan. Rick did not want to give The Saviors any weapons to spare, even if they were decayed and nearly immobile.

It seemed as if the Saviors were struggling for weapons. They did not have as many guns as Rick would have thought; they mostly had crowbars or blades.

"Rick!" Rosita shouted amid the gunfire, noticing this as well. "Did we take the armory?"

"I don't know!" He answered. "Cover me!" He went back towards the vehicles where Carl was.

"Carl! I need you to go find the armory!" Rick instructed.

"I'll accompany him," Gabriel said, determined to do his part in this. Rick nodded with no hesitation before heading back into the fire. The pair followed behind Rick before parting ways.

Morgan caught Rick's attention, nodding grimly as he killed several Saviors. Rick was nothing short of impressed, seeing that Morgan had given up his philosophy. He had doubts as to whether Morgan was prepared to fight, telling him that any hesitation could lead to him and other people's deaths.

Out of nowhere, Rick was tackled to the ground losing ahold of his gun. Arat sneered at the former sheriff before picking up his gun.

"This is what Negan should have done when he first met you," She aimed it at him, placing her finger on the trigger.

But the bullet never fired.

Instead, another bullet was lodged into Arat's eye; her body slumping to the ground. Rick turned his head to the direction of where the bullet came from and saw Rosita with her gun raised.

"I've been wanting to kill that bitch for the longest time," Rosita helped Rick to his feet. Rick stared at her in amazement before they both started firing again.

* * *

"Shiva! Do not exhaust yourself!" Ezekiel commanded. "You have done enough. Go back to the trucks," he had noticed the tiger slowly losing her strength. She stalked off, but not before giving one last roar to show The Saviors that a new era had arrived.

"That tiger," Michonne started to say as she slashed several Saviors into two, "She's something else."

"Indeed," Ezekiel chuckled as he swung his staff, knocking many Saviors to the ground.

Suddenly, three trucks arrived and started shooting at Rick and Ezekiel's people. Their attention turned to the new arrivals, exchanging gunfire with them.

The trucks drove forward, hoping to run over some of the Alexandrians or Kingdom residents. They knocked down more of the fence in the process.

Rick gritted his teeth in anger, hoping that this wouldn't mean The Saviors were turning the tide in their favor.

Rosita noticed Rick's agitation and drew closer to him. "We still have some aces up our sleeves," she reassured.

As if on cue, vehicles drove into the other side of the fence and fired at The Saviors trucks. Seeing that this battle would be pointlessly engaged from vehicles, Saviors poured out of the trucks with Simon leading them.

In response, Sasha, Abraham, and Jesus climbed out of the new vehicles with Hilltop Colonists and Oceanside women following suit.

The two sides rushed at each other furiously, each eager to get a taste of victory.

* * *

"Now, now, Rick!" Negan's booming voice echoed throughout the yard. "Do we really need to do this?" He temporarily halted the battle, preventing any further casualties from occurring since Simon and Sasha arrived.

"Yeah, I think we do," Rick cautiously approached Negan. "I've already killed dozens of your men... And I'm not nearly finished. You're going to watch us kill all your men and you won't be able to do a damn thing about it."

Negan became enraged at this, but kept his cool. "I think we can discuss this. Let's talk, Rick. We can go inside and work out an agreement."

"It's already been decided! It already was decided _that_ night, " Glenn appeared besides Rick, his entire body covered with blood and scowl darkening his face.

"I really liked you, Rick. I might actually shed a tear when I beat the hell outta you," Negan smirked. "You all made me feel something again. Something I hadn't felt since the apocalypse started."

Rick pointed his gun at Negan in response, causing everyone to start shouting.

Dwight's sudden appearance silenced everyone since he had the crossbow aimed at Rick.

"It's about time you showed up, right-hand man!" Simon called out, prompting Dwight to glare at the man.

"Oh, Simon, You're both my right-hand men. Who says there only had to be one?" Negan stated. "I have two hands, don't I? It's like you're my left and he's my right." Dwight only trained his eyes on Rick's.

Rick didn't hold eye contact with the man and instead focused on Negan. However, Glenn looked at Dwight, searching for any sign that he was truly on their side.

"Think of Sherry," Glenn whispered, knowing Dwight would not be able to hear him.

"Go ahead, Rick. Kill me. I'd rather have you do it than _him_ ," Negan gestured to Glenn with Lucille. "But you better shoot straight."

Everything slowed as Rick did his signature head tilt, signaling he was about to shoot to kill. Simon raised his gun at Rick, but an arrow struck Simon's throat before he could pull the trigger.

Negan stared slack-jawed as he saw his most trusted man keel over. He slowly turned his head towards the culprit.

"I guess I missed," Dwight stated smugly.

"DWIGHT!" Glenn rushed forward, seeing Negan raise the arm that held Lucille.

"Glenn, don't!" Rick cried out.

Dwight prepared for the hit that was coming; he felt sad that he wouldn't get to be with Sherry, but he wanted to go out with whatever pride he had left. He wanted to show Negan he wasn't able to break his spirit.

He smiled, thinking that he had finally been able to right his wrongs. He guessed that this is what Daryl must have felt that night... a feeling so powerful and raw.

But a loud clang next to his ear came instead. To the side of him, wood met metal.

Glenn used all his strength to prevent Lucille from hitting Dwight, grimacing at a shocked Negan. Everyone stared at Glenn in awe as he had protected Dwight with a bat of his own.

"Wha-What?" Negan stuttered. Dwight quickly got away from the two men, shaken up from the experience.

"You're not the only one with a bat," Glenn spat.

"Well, now that's a problem," Negan swung Lucille unexpectedly; Glenn barely able to defend himself. The momentum was so powerful that Glenn's bat hit him on the head. It didn't cause any serious damage, but it was enough to make him bleed from his forehead.

Negan grinned sadistically at the sight of the blood trickling down Glenn's face.

Immediately, gunfire started again. Several Saviors who had been standing were brought down from this new assailant.

Enid stepped forward, a twisted expression on her face as she fired at Negan. However, Negan had his bat raised and the bullet hit the wood instead.

Negan snapped his head towards the young girl. "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST DO?! YOU RUINED LUCILLE!"

"And I'll ruin you too," Enid snarled, aiming her gun at Negan once again.

"WADE! KILL HER!" Negan demanded. "NO!" Glenn exclaimed, unsure if he should attack Negan or run to Enid. He chose the latter.

But it was too late. Enid fell to the icy ground, clutching her fatal wound.

"Enid! Enid!" Glenn cradled the girl in his arms, barely realizing how small she was. Negan only looked on with glee.

The group stood frozen at the sight of this, unable to process the fact a teenager was murdered in cold blood.

"Don't waste your tears on me," Enid whispered as she placed her hand on Glenn's cheek.

"I'm sorry... Enid... I caused all of this..." Glenn couldn't keep his tears back as he held her for the last moments of her life. Around him, the battle resumed, but it was just Glenn and Enid in that moment.

"No... I wanted this..." Enid smiled painfully. This caused Glenn to cry harder, understanding how much he had damaged the girl by dragging her into this war.

"Kill..him... for...us," He voice started to fade. "I-I promise... I will," Glenn responded before placing a kiss on her forehead.

"You fought well, Enid. Thank you," Glenn stated, preventing her reanimation with his knife.

He stood up and looked for Negan, but the man was long gone. Glenn looked around and picked up a gun, heading out back towards their vehicles. He had forgotten something, and he couldn't complete the job without it.

* * *

The door to the armory was almost down. Sherry was backed into a corner, fearing that The Saviors were winning and no one was going to come to help her. She thought about what Dwight was doing; if he was even alive.

She looked straight ahead at the door, knowing time was almost up. She had held the armory for as long as she could. She had put her trust in too many men before; now she would be the one to take charge of things.

She stood up, smoothing her short, black dress. She had kicked off her heels, feeling as if they would only hinder her. She picked up an AK-47 from the rack, steadying herself with its weight and her own.

As she readied the rifle, the door had finally fallen. The Saviors were livid when they saw the woman, but their rage quickly turned into surprise as she gunned them down. Cool and collected, Sherry did not stop shooting until each Savior's blood pooled around their bodies.

She dropped the rifle, panting with exhaustion. Her ears heard rapid footsteps coming and she reached for the rifle again.

Whoever they were stopped in the entryway, taking in the massacre that has just occurred. She lifted the gun again, but did not pull the trigger as she saw it was a kid with an eyepatch and a priest.

"Sherry?" Carl asked, eyeing the blood and bodies.

"A-Are you with Glenn?" She carefully approached him.

"Yes, we are," Gabriel reassured. Sherry nodded her head and gestured with the gun, "It's all yours."

Gabriel and Carl exchanged glances as Sherry stepped out between them.

"Do you know where Dwight is? Is he alive?" Sherry did not want to get her hopes up, expecting the worst.

"We-We don't know. We haven't seen him," Gabriel answered.

"Sherry, wait. You need to help us. Keep guard here with Gabriel while I go tell my dad that we secured the armory. We need to get everyone here," Carl ordered. Sherry stared at him in disbelief, not liking the fact she was being bossed around by a kid.

"Okay," She crossed her arms. Carl gave her a thumbs up, pushing past her afterward to get another rifle.

Sherry and Gabriel were left alone, both standing around awkwardly.

"I'm surprised you were able to hold that rifle with such ease," Gabriel spoke up, getting into a fighting stance

"Yeah, well I'm a little trigger happy," Sherry narrowed her eyes, mirroring Gabriel's position.

Carl had made it back to his father, enjoying the new weapon he had acquired a little too much.

"We got it, dad," He snuck up behind Rick. "Sherry and Gabriel are in the armory."

"Good, now we need to move everyone over there," Rick looked around at the fighting ahead. "I just don't know how."

"Pardon me," Abraham appeared next to them. "I couldn't help but overhear what you were saying. I think I could be of some use."

"Go on," Rick listened closely.

"I can get a truck closer to the armory, and load the weapons into it. It'll be a helluva lot easier than carrying them around."

Rick nodded, agreeing that was the smartest option at the moment. "Carl, go with Abraham." He wanted his son off the battlefield; he wasn't going to lie to himself that he was giving him missions that were far beneath Carl's level. However, Carl didn't seem to be listening as something else caught his attention. He slowly moved towards it, ignoring Rick and Abraham's shouts.

He looked at the body horrified, feeling his hands gripping his rifle tightly.

"Why didn't you say anything?!" He yelled at his dad.

"I-I didn't want you to lose focus," Rick responded full of anguish.

"Was it Negan?!" He looked back down at Enid.

"Yes... he gave the order..." Rick moved towards his son, but Carl denied him.

"I'm going to shove this gun down his throat and let him gag on it before I pull the trigger," Carl said sadistically.

"Carl! We all have jobs to do. Yours is to help Abraham," Rick instructed, putting aside his emotions for logic.

"C'mon, kid," Abraham put an arm around the teen sadly, leading him away from the body. Carl kept looking back at his dad and Enid as he walked away.

Jesus and Glenn had entered the factory, desperately trying to find Negan.

"I'll search every floor if I have to!" Glenn shouted while Jesus gunned down the Saviors who stood in their way.

"Maybe he left and went to an outpost," Jesus said worriedly, running besides Glenn. They were too caught up in their running and conversation that they didn't hear The Saviors behind them until Jesus fell down.

The Saviors had started beating him with their weapons; the man struggling to get to his feet. Glenn had run out of bullets from his own gun; a much merciful death compared to the one that awaited them.

Jesus looked up in astonishment as the Saviors bit the dust around him. A vengeful Glenn stood before him, blood dripping from the nails on his bat.

"G-Glenn," Jesus could hardly recognize the man before him. However, he didn't have the time to dwell on this as more Saviors approached them.

At the same time, Glenn caught a glimpse of Negan above them, aiming a gun at them. He had his usual smirk plastered on his face.

"Move!" Glenn pulled Jesus to start running as Negan fired at them, but stopped as his men got in the way. He frowned, putting away his gun before leaving.

"Glenn! Go find Negan! I can take care of these dirtbags," Jesus stood in front of Glenn in a sparring position. Glenn took one last look back as he sprinted, startled to see Jesus using martial arts on the men.

"He'll be alright," Glenn thought out loud, knowing Jesus could take care of himself.

Glenn jogged alone for a while before he ran into Dwight, who was on his own mission to find Negan.

"Dwight! Are you looking for Sherry?" Glenn asked.

"No, I'm looking for Negan!" Dwight responded, irritated that he could not find him.

"He's above us! About five floors." Dwight grunted, already taking off towards the staircase.

"Dwight, listen to me. I will be the one to kill Negan," Glenn's voice dropped a few octaves, proving how determined he was on this matter. "No exceptions."

"Whoever finds him first should be the one to do it."

"I didn't make these for no reason," Glenn showed off his bats. Dwight stared at the weapons wide-eyed. "A bullet, an arrow, it's all too good for him. So unless you can get Lucille, I'll be the one to do it."

"...Okay. I'll corner him and take him to a place where no Savior can help him..."

"Thanks..."

"I should be thanking you for what you did earlier... I'm still alive because of you. Just-Just tell Sherry I'm alright, okay?"

"I will. I'm sure she's been wanting to know."

"I saw what happened to the girl... I'm sorry."

"I am too," was all Glenn said before heading to the armory. 


	17. 열일곱 This Day and Never Again Part 2

A/N: I noticed my longest chapter (which had the climax) was getting skipped in favor of the chapters afterward. So I decided to split up the chapter because of the length and because it is too important to skip. 

* * *

Negan had been surprised to find the armory locked with several Saviors trying to break the door down. He figured that they would take too long to do this and went up to his chambers to get the key, hence why he had spotted Glenn and Jesus.

He would not lose this dammit! He would prevail as he always did!

He charged down the stairs, nearing the armory until an arrow struck the wall beside him. Dwight slowly came out of the corner, his wrath evident on his face.

"You're not going any further, Negan," the crossbow was mere inches from Negan's face.

"Looks like your aim isn't getting any better," Negan chuckled, causing Dwight to strike him with the bow.

"Shut up for once and start walking towards your room," Dwight poked him in the back with the arrow.

"Spare me the trouble of having to walk up twenty levels of stairs and just shoot me," Negan sighed.

"Oh, I want to, but you and I need to talk first."

"Screw that! I'd rather be shot than face your dramatic monologue," Negan groaned while Dwight rolled his eyes at the irony.

* * *

Sherry could hardly contain her joy when she heard from Glenn that Dwight was alive. She felt as if their dream for a new life was becoming closer to reality. She blinked back tears as Glenn told her and Gabriel what had happened.

Her happiness quickly turned into apprehension once Glenn told her where Dwight was at the very moment they spoke.

"Don't concern yourself with me! Dwight's the one who is alone with that...that sadist!" Sherry exclaimed, trying to get Glenn out of the room.

"He wanted me to come see if you were safe!" Glenn felt as if he had done something wrong to upset Sherry like this.

"I am! He's the one who isn't!" Sherry finally managed to get Glenn out of the armory just as more people arrived. Glenn wanted to stay and chat, but he had to go to Dwight.

Sherry instantly recognized Carl from before and let him and his group pass through.

"Oh, how I've missed this," Abraham lifted an RPG from a rack hidden away at the back of the room. Everyone stared with their eyes widened at the weapon; all wondering what type of damage it was capable of.

"And I'm sure The Saviors have missed it too," Abraham winked wickedly, recalling the last time it blew them to bits.

"We'll test it out later. Right now let's gather as many guns as we can and take them to the frontlines," Carl stated, taking up the leadership role. Tara, Eugene, Gabriel, and Aaron started gathering the guns into their arms and went outside to store them into the truck.

Sherry leaned onto the wall; her mind filled with images of Dwight's broken and smashed body lying on the floor.

"Is something wrong?" Abraham moved in closer to her, but her back was turned towards him.

"Dwight... He's with Negan... and so is Glenn..." She trailed off. Carl and Abraham looked at each other anxiously.

"Tell me where they're at," Carl demanded, invading the woman's space.

"Nope," Abraham pulled the teen back. "You are not going anywhere."

"Abe, I-" Carl started to say, but Abraham didn't let him finish.

"I understand that you're angry about Enid. Hell, we all are. But you are not in any shape to fight. You are a disabled boy against a six-foot man," Abraham said bluntly. Carl glared at the man, knowing he was absolutely right.

Sherry had finally gotten ahold of herself and took up her rifle again. She couldn't break down here, not yet. She would be strong. Unlike the time she ran away, she would see this through to the bitter end.

* * *

Dwight and Negan stared at each other in the darkened bedroom before Negan broke the silence.

"So who talks first? Do I talk first? You talk first?"

"Even until the end you're still cocky," Dwight shook his head.

"Why wouldn't I be? I haven't lost yet, I am still standing!" Negan exclaimed, twirling Lucille.

"No one is coming for you."

"No? Did you suddenly forget the walkie talkie system I have in place? Then you're a bigger fool than I thought. A fool who finally grew a pair today!" Negan leaned on Lucille, taking in Dwight's surprise with great pleasure.

"No... You still won't win. You can't win!" Negan only laughed at this.

"Look outside, Dwight," Negan shoved him towards the large window. To Dwight's horror, more trucks pulled up and began gunning down several people. "I squashed each rebellion and I'll squash this one too." Dwight only stared helplessly from the inside of the compound, feeling as if a crushing weight was on top of him.

"Then I'll squash that ugly head of yours right after," Negan continued on. "Hell, you'll practically be begging for it. Seeing all your allies around you dead," He was practically in Dwight's face as he whispered, "Seeing Sherry dead...well, that would make any man want to die."

Dwight closed his eyes, imagining these scenes in his head. He couldn't bear to face the grim reality of Negan's words. Negan relished in Dwight's pain, continuing on. "How did it feel, Dwight? Feeling like you were a man for once, that you were in control for once? I bet it felt great! Like you and Sherry would finally get your happily ever after. I practically saved you both, I even forgave you for your little stunt and made you into something! But you got greedy. I'm not the monster here. I'm a decent guy! Whatever happens, you'll be the one to blame. Something you know very well."

Suddenly the appearance of another truck caught Dwight's attention. Out hopped Abraham holding an RPG and firing it at the other trucks. A massive explosion erupted, shaking the glass on the windows. People outside were cheering; Dwight even saw Rick's fist pump the air.

"That damn ginger..." Negan swore.

"You lost, Negan," Dwight faced the clearly agitated man. "The threat was right under your nose, but you deliberately ignored it because you couldn't deal with the fact people you considered lesser than would stand up against you. Would be your downfall!" Dwight's voice rose as a new bravado overtook him. "Everything you built was built on the backs of these people, built on their fears and weaknesses. You thought of yourself as a god, an untouchable thing who would be the savior of the new world. You are a very smart man, Negan. I've seen what you created, how it works, how you benefit from it. But that's all you are. A man. And it kills you that you couldn't surpass that."

Negan's nostrils flared at this. A string of curse words crossed his mind at how this prick had the audacity to say this to him. He opened his mouth, about to shout out his colorful language, but Dwight calmly stopped him.

"I once believed you were this godlike figure. We all did. But you're just pathetic. All this power and you couldn't save yourself."

Dwight barely ducked out of Lucille's path as she collided with the window. Glass was sent everywhere; some even cutting Dwight. He didn't waste any time in grabbing onto Negan's legs and pushing him down with all his might.

Lucille fell out of Negan's hands and rolled to the side. Dwight climbed on top of Negan and threw a punch at him. However, Negan caught Dwight's fist and twisted his arm. Dwight groaned, allowing Negan to throw him off. A kick to Negan's stomach gave Dwight some time to get back on his feet. Negan tackled the man and pushed him against the wall, punching him over and over. Dwight spotted the bat, struggling to get out of Negan's grasp.

Negan must have seen where he was looking as he let go of Dwight and picked up Lucille. He grinned down at Dwight before swinging the bat at him. Dwight slumped over in the nick of time, losing all strength but thankfully avoiding the bat once again.

Lucille hit the wall roughly; a loud smack emitted.

"You actually thought you were going to kill me? You can't even sit up!" Negan raised the bat up once again.

"No. I never thought that." Dwight chuckled as he lied on the floor, looking at the man in front of him.

"Glad I'm not the only one who sees the humor in your death!" Negan proclaimed, bringing down the bat forcefully. Dwight shielded his face with his arm; the hit so powerful it instantly broke his arm.

Negan was ignorant of the sound of metal being dragged across the concrete, instead raising up Lucille again to finish the job. However, Dwight was well aware of the sound.

"I was never going to be the one to do it," Dwight said weakly. "That's his job."

Negan glanced at the man oddly, suddenly feeling as if someone was behind him. Dwight could only smile as Negan spun around to see a fuming Glenn.

Negan took in the man, scanning his whole figure and his weapons; two bats.

"Well, ain't this precious?"

* * *

Back on the battlefield, Abraham, Carl, Tara, and Gabriel were taking on the freshly arrived backup. Eugene was inside the truck, debating if he should go out and fight.

"Eugene!" Abraham called out, noticing he was cowering in the truck. "Get yer' ass out here!"

"I am not equipped to fight," Eugene answered.

Abraham entered the truck, yanking Eugene out.

"Abe, I only make the bullets! I don't fire them!"

"You have stood in the face of death before, sniveling and trembling," Eugene looked startled at this. "Sasha told me what happened that night. This time, you can look death in the eye and spit in it!"

Eugene examined the gun Abraham had placed in his hands, thinking that he had finally earned his place in the group. He would not lie or hide anymore; he would fight and live. He smiled at Abraham softly, and Abraham did the same. They charged into battle, shooting and yelling at the enemy.

"I am honored to have you fighting by my side!" Abraham shouted over the gunfire. "I wouldn't have anyone else! Except maybe Sasha!"

"Having a high-ranking military sergeant as yourself fighting beside me is an honor as well!" Eugene laughed back.

"Eugene," Abraham looked at his friend sincerely. "You're a survivor now." He had barely managed to say that before he was shot.

"Abraham!" Eugene cried out.

"I-I'm f-fine," Abraham grimaced, holding onto his wounded shoulder. More gunfire was aimed at the pair; Eugene covering himself from it while Abraham tried to get to his feet.

A female Savior running towards them caught Eugene's attention, mostly because her outfit was out of place. She was wearing a short, low cut, dress compared to the plain, raggedy outfits the female Saviors wore. Her fist was balled up tightly, and it wasn't until she was closer did Eugene realize what she had.

She unpinned the grenade and threw it at them before Eugene could yell to take cover. Her aim was off due to the very moment she tossed it she was shot.

Eugene looked at Abraham one final time with tears streaming down his face before he ran towards the grenade.

"NO!" Abraham reached out to him, realizing too late what he was going to do. Eugene caught the grenade just as it exploded, bringing up clouds of dirt and grass that blinded Abraham and knocked him back down.

He lied there on the cold soil, too grief-stricken to move. He stared up at the gray sky as a snow flurry landed on his cheek.

* * *

"This is between you and me," Glenn took a few steps towards Negan. "You can kill Dwight if you kill me."

"That's a problem since I'm not here to die," Negan glowered.

"And I didn't come to die," Glenn retorted, putting his bats behind him in his backpack. "Let me get Dwight out of here first..." Negan simply nodded, rolling his eyes.

Glenn escorted Dwight outside; the latter telling Glenn, "You gotta win this." Glenn stayed silent, his thoughts preoccupied with other things.

Negan was staring out of the broken window when Glenn returned. He had his back facing Glenn, making Glenn wonder what sort of expression he wore.

"Anything you would like to say?" Negan looked at the battlefield with a hardened glaze.

Glenn paused before asking, "Why the name Lucille?"

"...Before the world went to shit, I had a wife, Lucille. She got cancer and died in the hospital once this all started. She turned into one of those things ..." Negan sighed deeply. "I couldn't kill her...I had someone else do it."

A gust of wind blew into the room as Glenn felt a rush of shock come over him at the parallels in their tragedies. Negan turned to see Glenn's widened eyes and agape mouth, frowning at this.

"What's with that face? You thought you were the only one to know the pain of losing a spouse? Or that someone like me could never understand?"

Glenn's eyes quickly narrowed and his expression turned severe. "I'm sorry. Your loss must have been so tragic. How could you possibly live on?" His tone was laced with mockery. "Should I just put you out of your misery then?"

Negan did not appreciate this, saying, "Killing me only proves my victory."

"I hardly consider your brains splattered across the wall winning," Glenn scoffed, his anger bubbling up inside him.

"For what it's worth...I'm sorry... I didn't know she was pregnant..." Negan moved a couple of steps closer to the other man.

"That doesn't matter for shit," Glenn's eyes were practically ablaze now.

"I know," Negan said, swinging Lucille down, Glenn on the defense with his nail bat.

It was like that for a while; Negan trying to land a hit on Glenn, while Glenn could only block. Glenn knew he had to switch his tactics because he wouldn't get anywhere if Negan was on offense.

Even with two bats, Glenn was still weaker than Negan. He quickly shrugged off his backpack, feeling as if it was hindering him.

"I expected more of a fight!" Negan laughed.

Glenn bit his lip, holding back his rage. He charged at Negan and swung from both sides. Negan cursed when Glenn managed to get a hit on his collarbone.

"Shit," Negan muttered, going back at Glenn with full force. Glenn's block was overpowered and he took a hit to his ribs.

He doubled over, clutching his ribcage. He managed to jump out of the way before Negan landed a blow to his skull, but still received a blow to his leg.

He fell back, breathing heavily whilst feeling blood trickle from the side of his mouth.

"I should have trained you as a soldier. You would have been perfect," Negan creepily smiled at the injured man.

"Screw you," Glenn kicked Negan's groin as hard as he could. Negan hunched over in agony, allowing Glenn to stand back up.

"Ya' know, I shouldn't have killed the redneck that night. It should have been you twitching on the ground!" Negan lunged at Glenn, tackling him. They wrestled on the ground, each grasping for their weapons.

Negan had the upper hand finally, pinning Glenn down. He reached for Lucille, struggling to get a good grip on the bat due to the blood on his hand.

Glenn looked up desperately, thinking that he was trapped. He groaned at the weight of Negan on top of him; his pain deepening.

"I want to hear you beg," Negan said sadistically. "Just like you did when we first met."

"I'd rather accept my defeat," Glenn closed his eyes momentarily, before ramming his head against Negan's nose. He fell back, clutching it, staining his hand red with the heavy blood flow.

Negan glared daggers at the now standing man, thinking how good it would feel to bring Lucille down on his head.

Both men were bruised and covered in blood, but they wanted the other even more wounded. They stared each other down before battling again.

Negan twirled Lucille before he swung it with all his might at Glenn. Glenn, in turn, swung his metal bat with as much force at Negan.

Their bats collided loudly, but what happened next was something Glenn would not have predicted if he had not seen it with his own eyes.

Lucille splintered into several pieces of wood; the barbed wire flung across the room at the sheer force of the impact.

"NOOOO!" Negan cried out as Glenn stared in shock at what had just happened.

"YOU!" Negan grabbed the wreckage that was Lucille in his palms. "I WILL FEED EACH ONE OF YOUR PEOPLE TO WALKERS WHILE YOU'RE FORCED TO WATCH!" Negan stood up, shaking with anger. But a quick strike to his groin with the nail bat forced him to his knees. He continued howling and cursing as he bled out.

"YOU THOUGHT WHAT I DID WAS BAD?! WHAT'S NEXT WILL BE NOTHING COMPARED TO THAT! YOU HEAR ME, YOU DISGUSTING CHINK?! YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS! YOU MOTHERFUC-" Negan was never able to complete his sentence as the metal bat was shoved into his mouth, silencing him forever.

"I'm Korean," Glenn replied before suddenly ripping the bat from his throat, taking out pieces of his teeth, tongue, and skin. Negan gargled on his own blood, looking at the vengeful man that towered over him.

"I can't quite hear you, Negan. But that's alright. You choking on your own blood is a much better sound than your voice," Glenn smirked, twirling his nail bat.

"As we fought I thought about how you named your bat. I guess the metal one is named Maggie. And the wooden one is Herschel. Maybe even Beth," Glenn's eyes darkened. Negan only looked up helplessly and wordlessly.

"And if you thought this was bad, well, you should close your eyes for this next part," Glenn twirled 'Herschel' before slamming it down on Negan's face.

* * *

"Sherry?" a female voice whimpered.

"Amber?" Sherry left the armory, finding the girl standing right outside. She was covered in dirt, blood, and bruises.

"You look terrible. Come here, I'll clean you up," Sherry wrapped an arm around the young girl.

"I saw Dwight upstairs... He looked bad," Amber was deeply traumatized.

"Dwight! We have to go to him! Now!" Sherry tried leading Amber, but she wouldn't budge.

"Sherry...why were you in the armory?" Amber looked at her with no expression.

"I was guarding it..."

"Were you with the people who attacked this place?" Sherry did not answer this.

"You were, weren't you?"

"Amber, what I did... it was for a better life. For me, Dwight... you."

"Shut the hell up, Sherry," Amber's voice drastically changed, startling the woman. "You were always selfish. You did this for yourself."

"It's not like that at all! You saw what Negan did to us! What he did to you and Mark!" Sherry shot back.

"I had to see my mom die! I'm still covered in her blood! In my friends' blood!" Amber screamed, pulling out a Colt Python.

"Amber...don't... please.." Sherry put her hands up in defense.

"You and Dwight were always a bunch of traitors. Negan should have killed you both..." She laughed maniacally.

Sherry took Amber by surprise, tackling her and taking the gun from her.

"You could have come with us!" Sherry cried out while Amber kept laughing. She had officially lost her sanity. Sherry only looked down at her in pity before pressing the chamber to her temple, pulling the trigger down.

Sherry knew that Amber was beyond saving. She was now a threat, a loyalist to the end. She had no other choice, knowing this new group was out for blood. She probably did her a favor.

She still wept regardless.

* * *

Glenn could only stare at the unrecognizable body of Negan as the stench of blood filled the room. The last minutes of what happened replayed in his mind; the endless bashing and bludgeoning that painted the walls and windows red.

He felt his stomach lurch at the memories, tears welling up in his eyes. Not for Negan, no, he had enjoyed this. But for the road that led to this. For what he had been reduced to.

He did not regret this, he would gladly beat Negan again. However, as he stared at the mess around him he sobbed. He remained in a curled up position, crying until his throat was dry and he could cry no longer.

Something caught his attention. A figure. It moved towards the body and started dragging it towards the door.

It was him. But it wasn't. The Glenn in front of him had an evil gleam in his eye and a twisted smile on his face.

It continued dragging the body out along with the barbed wire that came off Lucille. Glenn followed the clone curiously, wondering if what he was seeing was real.

It dragged the body towards the front of the warehouse, breaking a window that would give everyone below a clear view.

Glenn blinked and saw the barbed wire in his own hand; the clone had disappeared. He realized that he had been the one who had dragged the body over here.

He needed to show everyone that this war was over; they had won. It would be futile to fight with their leader dead.

* * *

He displayed the eyeless body in front of the factory, hanging the wire around its neck. The only recognizable accessory was Negan's signature clothing.

From below, everyone looked up, gasping at the horror that was above them.

Sherry, who was escorting Dwight out of the building towards a truck, looked up and nearly let go of the man. Dwight grabbed onto her tightly, wanting to faint at the sight of this.

Rick met Glenn's eyes and an understanding passed between them. They had done it.

"Kill every last Savior! And make sure they're dead! If not," Glenn had both his bats crossed behind him, "I'll make sure they are!" He brought them to the front of his body, lowering his head villainously.

"Do not forget what they did to us! And we'll make it known to anyone what we did to them!" His bloody bats were still crossed as he continued.

Sadistic grins spread across from the Alexandrians to the Colonists to the Kingdom citizens to the Oceanside women. The fun was just beginning.

The remaining Saviors screamed and pleaded for their lives, but there was no mercy shown in any form.

People were shot, stabbed, burned, blown up, mauled, or even worse, bashed if Glenn saw so much as any Savior moving.

Rick, Carl, Michonne, Abraham, Rosita, Sasha, Aaron, Jesus, Tara, Ezekiel, Netanya, and even Gabriel and Morgan unleashed their inner darkness, ignoring their inner consciences. As did every other citizen present. Shiva even reentered the battle, feasting on The Saviors once again.

From within a truck, Sherry could only comfort Dwight as they watched in apathy at the destruction around them.

The fires mixed with the fresh snow, creating a beautiful glowing effect. Glenn stood at the forefront of the battle, watching what he helped create with satisfaction.

Snow fell onto him as he leaned on his bats with a smile on his face, humming an old sweet song in his heart. 


	18. 열여덟 A Tender Feeling

"Things can get better. We can make them better."

~Maggie Greene

The warm water hit his frigid skin, rinsing him of what he had been a part of. Glenn watched as the dark red liquid stained the pale, white porcelain, staring blankly as it went down the drain.

He massaged his scalp, cleansing his hair of the dirt and blood with the water. He embraced the peacefulness the shower brought, enjoying every drop that hit his body.

His fingers trailed the wounds he had received as he bathed. The indentation of barbed wire on his ribcage and leg.

The stench of blood and smoke overtook his thoughts from the wounds, causing him to scrub his skin harder. He wanted that smell out of his body; those stains, those wounds.

He laid his palm on the fogged, glass door, exhausted from the battle that had carried on for hours into the night. They had only recently returned to Alexandria since there were still the outposts to be taken care of.

Only when each outpost was left in ruins, could everyone return home to rest- unless they were severely injured like Glenn.

But he had refused to return, the adrenaline in his body allowing him to keep fighting.

Now, his body ached; the shower helped relieve his muscles very little. He did not want any medical attention; he believed those with worse injuries should be of priority.

He turned off the water, drying himself with a nearby towel. He changed into some fresh clothes, which were the color black as of late. His dirty, tattered clothes were in a heap by the door. There was no use in wearing them again, they were too far soiled.

To his surprise, he saw a meal and a glass of water by his bedside. He wondered who had been in his house, but quickly pushed the thought aside as his stomach growled.

After he had finished eating, he laid down across the bed, looking over at the empty bed space. Each time he went to bed, he had expected and hoped Maggie would be lying there beside him. She would look up at him with her bright, green eyes, smiling that he had returned. He would pull her into his arms and tell her how much he had missed her. How much he loves her and that they could finally be together because no one would ever separate them again.

But she was not there, just like the time before that and the time before that. He was there alone, never to feel her again.

* * *

Rick knew he wouldn't be able to get much sleep tonight. He was too high on adrenaline to rest. The only thing he could do was walk around the city, thinking over everything.

He smiled, remembering Olivia's face when she saw them return. She broke down crying, believing they would not come back alive and it would be Negan instead at the gate.

Negan.

His smile twisted into one of pain and anguish as that name crossed his mind.

But his smile returned when he thought of seeing that man's body hanging from the factory, albeit more sadistic.

How ironic it was really. Negan's stuff now belonged to them! Rick wanted to laugh at the notion, finding it hilarious at how much this war had cost them and their reward was Negan's shit.

He walked around the freshly dug graves for Enid and Eugene. Carl, Rosita, and Rick had been the ones to deal with this heavy burden of burying them.

Rick glanced at the several graves littered across the grass. He made a note to make them look nicer; possibly planting trees or plants on the soil.

His thoughts went to Carl, wondering if his son would be okay after everything. Rick wasn't an idiot; he noticed the change within his son, his group. They were on the brink of insanity and had tapped into it just mere hours ago.

He sighed deeply, thinking he needed to do something about this. But before he could brainstorm, movement caught his eye.

It was Tara. She was walking with a plate in her hand towards Glenn's house. He watched as she slipped into his house quietly. Rick wanted to follow her in to check up on her and Glenn, but he decided against it.

He stood still, thinking deeply about _what he_ should do until a voice called out to him.

"Rick?"

The man spun on his feel to face a curious Michonne approaching him.

"What are you doing up so late?" He asked.

"I could ask you the same thing," She smiled back. Her smile was contagious and he found himself smiling too.

"But I was on my way to pick up some meals for our two newest residents. Tara and Rosita are making dinner or breakfast, I guess, for different people," She continued. "And I've been delivering them. Would you like to help?" She wanted him to; she felt like that was what he needed. He needed to help his people in this moment of recovery.

"Okay," He responded, his voice barely above a whisper. They went into Rosita's house, which was filled with all sorts of delicious aromas.

She had buried herself in her cooking, not hearing them walk in.

"It smells good in here, Rosita. I think I'll have some for Carl and me," Rick's hand was already reaching out for the two plates set aside.

Rosita quickly moved the plates out of his grasp, playfully glaring at him. "These aren't for you! They're for Sherry and Dwight."

Michonne took the plates from Rosita, saying, "He knows. He actually came to help deliver them."

"Ah, okay. Don't worry, Rick. I'll make more for you and Carl," Rosita grinned.

"I don't want you to overwork yourself though. You all need to rest," Rick warned.

"We will. But we have to do this first," Rosita went back to cooking. Michonne just chuckled at Rick's worried face.

"Rick, can you take some bottled water also?" Rosita looked over her shoulder.

"Yeah," He answered, picking up some bottles as Michonne grabbed the plates.

"Come back so you can take some more plates to the infirmary," Rosita called out as Rick and Michonne exited.

* * *

Sherry answered the door tiredly. She was about to go to bed when someone had knocked on the front door. To her bewilderment, Michonne and Rick were standing there offering her a hot meal and drinks.

"We wanted to welcome you to Alexandria," Michonne smiled at the sleepy woman.

"..Oh, thank you," Sherry took the plate and drink from them. "Sorry, I'm just really tired. I was actually about to go to sleep when you all arrived." Sherry suddenly felt self-conscious about her appearance. Her hair was wet, she was wearing a thin nightgown, and she imagined her eyes with dark circles underneath.

"There's no need to apologize. We should've come earlier," Rick stated. "But you should rest. It's been a hard night for all of us."

"Um, would you like to come in?" Sherry moved aside to let them enter. They obliged.

"How do you like your house?" Rick took in the minimal furniture in the house.

"It's...amazing. It reminds me so much of how things used to be. Dwight and I could hardly believe that we actually had a house again," Sherry placed her meal on the kitchen counter. "And an actual shower... It felt so good."

Rick and Michonne exchanged grins at this, remembering their awe at Alexandria's ingenuity.

"Well, if there's anything else you need, let us know," Michonne said warmly.

"Hm, maybe a mattress?" Sherry cast her eyes down. Michonne stayed silent at this, while Rick cleared his throat.

"The Saviors had taken most of ours...We're going to need to scavenge for more..." Rick muttered.

"Whenever you go...I'd like to help," Sherry said firmly.

"Thank you," Michonne smiled softly. "We're going to need a lot of help rebuilding."

"We also brought a meal for Dwight," Rick interrupted, deciding he was too tired to think about the future right now. "Is he here?"

"No, he's at the infirmary. He's bruised all over, has a broken arm," Sherry sighed. "I could take the plate over to him. You're the ones who need to rest."

"We were on our way over there," Michonne replied. "There are more people who need food and we won't rest until everyone is taken care of."

Sherry could only remain motionless as Michonne's words rang in her ears. Never had she experienced a leader who put their people first, who worked for them and not the other way around.

"Well, have a good night, Sherry," Rick broke her train of thought as he and Michonne showed their way out.

Sherry could only eat her food in deafening silence, staring at the other plate across from her. She realized how much she had missed Dwight's company throughout those long months separated. She quickly stood up, snatching up his plate and water.

This was the start of a new life and she would not waste it alone.

* * *

Back at Rosita's house, Tara and Glenn were conversing instead of cooking.

"You could have at least waited. I wouldn't have minded, Tara," Glenn teased.

"I had to deliver other meals and help Rosita out! I couldn't just wait until you were done showering! Plus what if you were to come out naked?" Tara asked incredulously.

"If you're not going to help, then just leave! The door is wide open!" Rosita shouted before Glenn could respond. However, the pair just laughed at the irritated woman, which annoyed her even more.

"What's so funny?!" Rosita glared.

"You-You have a little sauce on your forehead," Tara couldn't stop laughing. Rosita wiped her head with her fingers, looking down at her hand confused. She indeed had sauce on her.

She wiped the rest of it off with a towel, throwing it angrily at Glenn before saying, "Get back to work."

Rick and Michonne entered the house again and to their surprise saw Glenn laughing and smiling, something he rarely did these days.

"Glenn, you look good," Michonne went up to him, putting her arms on him. "Certainly better than the rest of us."

"No, inside I feel terrible. But I couldn't just sit around and do nothing," He chuckled.

"Which is exactly what you're doing," Rosita handed him stacked plates. "I'm going with you all to the infirmary. Tara, will you keep cooking?"

"Yeah, of course," Tara went to Rosita and took the spatula from her hand.

"Thanks," Rosita smiled at the woman, before handing more plates to the others. Rosita herself lifted a box full of bottled waters.

"Okay, let's go," Rosita stated. "We have a lot to do." The others nodded in response, walking out together.

* * *

"Now what's this?" Abraham sat up, his shoulder bandaged. He immediately regretted moving because pain shot through his upper chest. He groaned; his hand placed on the white bandaging.

"You know better than to be moving around," Sasha furrowed her eyebrows. She had remained at his bedside since they had arrived. She had wanted to be at Hilltop, but Jesus had assured her that Hilltop would be okay for now. Her place was with Abraham.

"I know, but when I see food, I get excited," He winced. Sasha shook her head while chuckling.

"I will just take this plate back and eat it myself if you injure yourself more," Rosita said as she placed his meal on his lap.

"Nah, don't do that," Abraham pleaded. "I'm already in too much pain." Rosita looked at him sadly, before giving Sasha her own plate.

"Here you go, Sasha. You must be starving."

"Yeah, I am," Sasha started eating. "Thank you... Rosita, for all of this."

"Take care of him. He's really going to need it right now," Rosita felt the weight of Eugene's death upon her. Her eyes began to well up, remembering how much he had contributed for their cause and victory.

"You will too. We all will. We're a family now, we will have to take care of each other," Sasha grasped Rosita's hand, exchanging smiles with one another.

Abraham had stopped eating and watched the women grief-stricken. Throughout the past 12 hours, all he could think about was Eugene. He had temporarily forgotten about him once he arrived at the infirmary, but his shoulder wasn't the only thing aching. His heart felt heavy and each time he blinked he felt as if tears would spill out.

"You better not expect me to spoon-feed you," Sasha cocked an eyebrow, wanting to change the somber mood.

"Well, now that you mention it..." Abraham grinned, causing Rosita to roll her eyes jokingly and leave the pair.

In the next bed over, Sherry was helping Dwight with his food.

"You're really going to like the house," She said as she cut his food for him. "When do you think you'll be able to come home?"

"The nurse said I was free to go tomorrow," He said in between chews.

"Oh, thank goodness. I thought you were in more critical condition," Sherry rubbed his leg.

"...I'm just glad you're here with me," Dwight looked at her intensely. "And I don't know if I've said this before, but I love you, Sherry. I should have said that more times and I want to make sure I say it enough."

"You really are sick," She leaned into him, placing her mouth on his. "I think you'll need to stay here longer." They kissed passionately, sharing in this intimate moment.

Glenn watched awkwardly from the side, not wanting to interrupt. He had wanted to talk to the couple, but they were engaged in something private.

Dwight took notice of Glenn and grudgingly broke the kiss. He had been craving this for so long and he didn't want to stop.

"Yeah, sorry, but are you two feeling okay?" Glenn scratched his neck.

"I've never been better," Dwight answered. "How are you doing? You're the one who had to fight him..."

"Have you even gotten any medicine?" Sherry asked concerned.

"No, I'm fine. These patients need the medicine more than I do. Don't waste it on me," Glenn answered. Before Sherry could call the one medical worker over to them, Glenn had already walked away. However, Rick had noticed his friend's agitation and stopped him.

"Glenn, I've been feeling like we need to get the group to find themselves again. To take their minds off everything that happened, even if it's for a few hours. But I have no idea how."

"...Maybe a picnic or something? I don't know. This isn't like you, Rick. You've never been one to plan family nights."

At the utterance of these words, Rick is taken back to the night that devastated them. The fantasy of what the new world could have been is replayed back in his mind just as it was then.

"I know..." Rick swallowed his near emotional outburst down. "What about a family dinner?"

Glenn blinked a few times before answering. "I-I don't think I'll be-" But Rick cut him off.

"When that night happened, I envisioned us... all of us... Maggie, Daryl, Carol, Enid, Eugene, your child..." Rick paused. "I envisioned that we would rebuild this world and we would have birthdays and family dinners and Christmas. For a while, it wasn't possible. But now I know it is. I want to make sure we do the things we're supposed to before it's too late."

"Then yes, let's have that family dinner," Glenn smiled through his streaming tears.

Rick smiled back, but not before getting onto him about seeking medical attention.

"You're not even breathing normally. You're taking these shallow breaths like you're in pain."

"I am in pain, but I'll manage."

"It might be something more serious, Glenn. Let Irene do a check up on you."

"Irene?"

"She's from the Oceanside Community. She volunteered to come to Alexandria since we didn't have a doctor."

"I don't want to bother her; she's busy with more important things," Glenn explained. "I can just get some aspirin and I'll be okay," Glenn stalked off towards the medicine cabinet and pulled out two caplets of aspirin. He noticed how there were very little left. He felt bad, but swallowed them nonetheless.

"Do you need something?" A woman asked from behind. He startled and quickly turned around to see who he guessed was Irene.

"Uh, I already got what I needed. Just some aspirin."

"Oh, so you're not the one named Glenn who was hit with a barbed wire bat?"

"How do know my name? And the fact I was hit with a bat?" Glenn took a few steps back from the woman.

"Sherry told me. She said I should come see you."

Glenn glared across the room at Sherry, who was not paying any attention to him purposely.

"Where were you hit?" Irene questioned.

"On the side of my ribs and leg," He replied, touching his right side.

"Have you noticed any swelling or bruising?"

"I've noticed bruising. I'm not sure about swelling."

"What about any protrusions or dentations?" She continued asking.

"No, I haven't noticed any of that."

"Do you mind if I check?"

"Yeah, kinda. It hurts to breathe, but I don't think my ribs are broken."

"Well, let me give you some ice...er...snow to soothe it," Irene smiled, taking a cloth and exiting the infirmary.

Glenn stood around awkwardly, waiting for her to come back. After a few minutes, she returned with a cloth packed with the snow.

"Just press this onto the bruise and make sure to get plenty of rest. Would you like me to disinfect your leg?"

"Oh, go ahead," Glenn rolled up his pant leg. The woman prepared a cotton ball with alcohol before lowering herself. He gritted his teeth as the fluid burned his cut, impatiently waiting for her to finish. Once she had finished bandaging the wound, he thanked her and left.

He had pressed the snowpack under his jacket and shirt, wanting to find solitude back at his dark house. Being around others only reminded him of what he had lost and what could never be found again.

Once he arrived home, he sank to his knees and let himself drown in his sorrow. He didn't even remember going upstairs to his bedroom and opening the closet, wrapping himself in Maggie's clothes. He took in her scent that was left behind in the fabric, crying out her name over and over again.

He cried until he could cry no longer, eventually falling asleep tangled in her clothes.

* * *

In the days that had passed, many things had been accomplished. Several people were at liberty to go on runs without fear of Negan or any Savior running into them.

They had recovered the ever-so-needed medicinal supplies for the wounded.

Rick had organized a group consisted of Dwight, Sherry, Aaron, Michonne, Carl, and Gabriel to retrieve new mattresses for the ones that had been stolen and burnt. The Saviors' trucks had been a great aid in this.

Some of The Oceanside women had moved to Alexandria to fill the vacant houses, including Irene, Netanya, and Cindy.

Rick, Sasha, and Ezekiel had met several times to work out a trading system between the communities.

However, Glenn had not been present for any of this. He practically locked himself in his house. The only time he would go out was to get food. He had shed the title of being the errand boy.

Many people had been worried about him, expecting Glenn to have taken part in their newfound joy. They expected their ray of sunshine to return since this was finally over.

Then, one warm day, which was unusual for this time of year, Glenn's doorbell rang.

Glenn figured it was only a matter of time before everyone started coming to his house to check up on him. They just could never understand the toll these last months had taken on him.

He hated to think this, but he had been one of the few who had thrived in the apocalypse. How many of them could say the same thing?

He was glad they were able to rebuild Alexandria and their lives; they deserved the peace they fought so desperately for.

But he felt no need in rebuilding what was taken from him. He had all of that with Maggie; peace, love, happiness, courage, selflessness, and hope.

He slowly approached the door, the sun outside blinding him once he opened it.

Carl stood on the grass with a soccer ball under his foot.

"I thought you'd want to play!"

"No thanks," Glenn started to close the door before Carl kicked the ball to him.

"C'mon! We're having a soccer match before we feast! It's like Thanksgiving at my house."

The memory of Rick wanting to have a family dinner came back to his mind and this gave him a moment to pause.

"I don't have a family anymore, Carl...It's just me," Glenn kicked the ball back.

"You're wrong, Glenn," Carl picked up the ball, walking over to the front door. "One time...Enid told me that you convinced her to live on. You told her that we're not supposed to let this world die. How you honor the dead by going on or some stuff like that. What about all those quotes you used to say how we're your family? How the people who died made you who were?!" Carl got in the man's face. "Do we not mean anything to you then?! I guess that would make sense then! You didn't cry over Enid! You got her killed! She died for you! She loved you!"

Glenn could only watch at the teenager seething in front of him. The guilt and anguish suffocating him at each word that came out of Carl's mouth.

"I said all that before Maggie died. Before my child died. Before Carol, Daryl, Enid, and Eugene died. If I would have known...I would have never said that."

"Maggie wouldn't have let this world die...If it would have been you that night...She would have rebuilt this world in your memory...Don't let her die twice, Glenn."

Carl watched somberly at the broken man in front of him. His friend had died...what stood in front of him was the phantom of Glenn.

"If none of this affects you...then your heart is already too far gone..." Carl turned around, walking off sadly towards his house.

* * *

"He's not coming," Carl responded to his dad's question of where Glenn was. "Whatever. We can still have fun without him," He tried convincing himself, kicking the ball to his dad. Rick told his son that they would play after they ate.

Rosita and Michonne were setting the tables set outside on the lawn, while the other Alexandrians were coming over with different dishes. Everyone greeted each other happily, laughing and chatting away. There were drinks passed around and finger foods to keep everyone satisfied.

Around the main table sat Rick, Carl, Abraham, Michonne, Rosita, Aaron, Eric, Gabriel, Judith, Tara, Olivia, Dwight, and Sherry. There was an empty chair for Glenn, which was very conspicuous.

"Well, looks like everyone is here," Rick stated glumly.

"Not everyone..." Sherry whispered, causing Dwight to wrap an arm around her.

Everyone stared at their plates, not wanting to touch their food.

"I'm disappointed in you all," a voice said out of nowhere. "How could none of you prepare dessert?"

The group gasped and nearly cried out as they saw Glenn holding a dish of cookies, approaching them quickly.

They all jumped out their seats, embracing him and chuckling at his jest.

"I knew you'd make it," Abraham proclaimed before getting him in a bear hug.

"Sit here, at the head of the table," Rick pointed, moving towards the opposite end.

Glenn took his seat, partaking in the feast that was presented in front of him.

"Rick, did you forget about us?" Morgan called out, with Gabriel, Jesus, Sasha, Ezekiel and Shiva following behind him.

"Of course not!" Rick exclaimed, unable to believe his eyes.

Sasha kissed Abraham before pulling up a chair at the table. Abraham passed Glenn a beer who politely refused whilst laughing.

Rick held Judith who was giggling at everything in front of them. Carl tickled her, which caused her to laugh more.

Shiva was by the side of the house, eating a whole turkey. Ezekiel pointed this out to everyone, which caused everyone to look at her with amusement tinged with fear.

Sherry and Dwight took in the spectacle in front of them with surprise and excitement. They found themselves actually laughing for once.

Carl asked his dad if he could have some beer, which the obvious answer was a resounding no.

Everyone agreed that the food and drinks had never tasted better. The time it took to finish everything proved this true.

Once everyone had finished, Carl challenged his dad to a soccer match. It was Rick, Rosita, Glenn vs. Carl, Michonne, Jesus. By the end of it, they were covered in grass stains and sweat.

Carl's team had won, causing Michonne and Jesus to lift him up in victory. He yelled and cheered and no one could be mad at him for unsportsmanlike conduct.

When the sun had begun to set, people were barely cleaning up and going home. The citizens had told Rick they wanted to do this more often. Rick promised they would.

"What made you decide to come?" Rick went over to Glenn, meeting his eyes softly.

"I accomplished my mission with Negan. He took so much away from my life. He couldn't have my future too. If there was one thing he was right about, is that we have to rebuild civilization," Glenn responded, turning his head towards the darkening sky. "Your son told me something wise today. Don't let Maggie die twice. If we rebuild this world, I can make sure she lives on." Glenn looked back at Rick, whose blue eyes turned even bluer with the tears that formed.

"I can make sure you all live on. We can be the true saviors of the new world."

* * *

A/N: Thank you to all who have voted and commented. Feedback is always appreciated!

I hope this fluffy chapter was satisfactory after the roller coaster the last chapter was. 


	19. 열여덟 Blood of a New World

"People with nothing to hide don't usually feel the need to say so."

-Michonne

Freshly fallen snow blanketed Alexandria, putting an end to the warm streak it had been having. No child could be seen playing outside and no family dinners were held again.

The flowers that had covered the graves were frozen and dead; their hues now discolored and dark. Just as the city had become.

The only things that provided evidence of life were two figures walking side by side through the still neighborhood.

One stood shorter than the other; not a very noticeable difference, but one nonetheless.

The taller one spoke quietly towards the other, careful to not let their words be carried by the wind.

The shorter figure listened intently, wanting to hear every word that came out of the elder's mouth.

They suddenly paused in front of a house; a house that once held a man and his wife and their future child, but currently belonged to only a man.

The figures looked at the brooding house, whispering solemnly under their chilly breaths.

* * *

"It looks like you're nearly healed," Irene smiled as she finished inspecting Glenn's wounds.

"It sure hurts like hell," Glenn gave her a half-smile back, lowering his shirt and pants leg. "How are Dwight's injuries?" He knew the man was in much worse condition than he was.

"He'll still need some more months to rest," Irene had her back turned since she was cleaning up.

"And Abraham?" Glenn's mind raced to several of the injured people, fearing that they might have taken a turn for the worse without his knowledge.

"Glenn, he'll live. So will the others," Irene turned to face him, seeming to read his mind. "It'll take weeks, even months, but they will all be okay."

"Yeah, sorry," Glenn stated, looking away from the woman's soft gaze. "You're the doctor here... not me. I should trust your word."

Irene's almond-brown eyes widened in amusement as she started to chuckle. "I'm not a doctor... at least I wasn't yet. I was studying to be over here until... until there was no here. Or there."

"I always thought you looked a little too young to be a doctor," Glenn chuckled with her.

"Yes, I am...I was just a medical student," A sudden sadness overcame her as she remembered her home country and the family she left there. She had come to the U.S. as a foreign student in pursuit of a better education.

Glenn was unsure what to say, sensing she was thinking deeply about something personal.

The silence was broken as Sherry walked in. She looked worried, but seeing Glenn there her expression suddenly became happy.

"Glenn," Sherry smiled warmly as she approached him. "How are you?"

"Exhausted, still. I feel like no amount of sleep will be enough," he joked.

"Dwight says the same thing. Must be a man thing," Sherry giggled. She turned her attention towards Irene, who wondered why she was here. She assumed she wanted to know something related to Dwight.

"I need to talk to you about something," Sherry's eyes shifted to Glenn. "It's something personal. and..." She trailed off, but Glenn understood.

"Yeah...I'll just go," Glenn took his leave, not wanting to put her in an uncomfortable situation.

* * *

Trying to keep his body heat in him, Glenn stuck his hands in his black jacket. He exhaled, watching his breath take form in front of him.

He noticed a group of Oceanside women walking in the opposite direction; they were about to pass each other. Glenn, trying to be friendly to the new residents, waved at them.

However, the women gave him a strange look and huddled closer together. He heard them whisper harshly as they walked away. He stood in the middle of the pavement, eyes blinking in confusion.

An ominous chill ran through his spine, warning him that something was wrong.

Movement from the nearby church caught his attention. Rick was leading Morgan to the cemetery whilst talking to him about an important matter.

Rick's midwinter sky eyes met Glenn's, but before Rick could call out to him Glenn quickly walked off.

* * *

Once in a safe environment, Glenn locked the door, paranoid that someone was watching him. He turned on all the lights, making sure no corner was covered in darkness.

He slowly climbed the stairs to his bedroom, shaking but not from the cold.

His eyes skimmed across the room, feeling more unnerved as the seconds ticked. He couldn't figure out why he felt this way- he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

From behind him, an all too familiar voice was heard. A voice that shook Glenn to the bone. A voice that he wanted to forget. A voice that should have been silenced.

"Hey, batter-batter. Swing!"

Glenn spun around to see nothing was there. No taunting or grinning man was there. All that stood there was a wardrobe.

Glenn sighed, feeling as if his heart had stopped beating for a minute. He wanted to forget Negan's voice as soon as he could. But he feared that even if he had grown so old he became deaf, he would still hear it.

He had been staring at the wardrobe absentmindedly, realizing that the room had gotten warm with his heavy jacket. He stripped his jacket off, opening the wardrobe door to hang it up.

He heard his heart pound loudly in his ears as he looked at the wardrobe bottom; a knocked down backpack that should have been standing upright. That should have had two bats on the sides of it.

Glenn could only stare in panic as that damned, mocking laughter rang throughout the bedroom. 


	20. 열아홉 On the Edge

"There is no right; there's just the wrong that doesn't pull you down."

~Morgan Jones

"I hope I'm not bothering you with this," Rick said as he led Morgan into Alexandria, his breath visible in the cold air.

"No, no, Rick. It's fine. I have a lot of spare time on my hands now...after the war..." Morgan trailed off, his mind focusing in on the not-so-distant memory.

"You mean to tell me Ezekiel isn't having you walk Shiva?" Rick attempted to lighten the mood, cracking a smile at his friend. Morgan broke out of his trance, smiling back.

"Oh, he does keep me busy with her alright. Picking up her shit," Morgan chuckled. Rick joined in his laughter, already imagining Morgan doing this.

"I really wished you would have stayed here, Morgan. We need someone like you."

"Not after everything that's happened... I'm just not-"

"You're just not happy here? But you are over there. I understand," Rick interjected glumly.

"It's not that, Rick. It's that the life I made here is over," Morgan finished, leaving his answer vague purposefully. He didn't want to explain the full reason for him not wanting to return; the reason that threatened to overwhelm him as he came upon where Rick had been leading him to.

The cemetery.

The place marked as Rick and Morgan's greatest mistakes.

"Why did you bring me here, Rick?" Morgan's voice shook with grief and rage.

"I-I wanted to know if you would help me," He took a sigh in-between words. "Help make a memorial or statue or some sort of reminder for here. They all deserve better than a pile of dirt and a plank of wood."

Morgan remained silent, mulling this over in his mind. He considered Rick to be his closest friend, and he knew how much this would mean to him. He looked at the looming cemetery to the side of him, imagining how instead of wooden boards marking the land it could be something more meaningful.

Rick lingered by Morgan's side in front of the church, trying to keep his composure. He didn't want to enter the graveyard because each time he did, there were more arrivals.

The sense of someone nearby alerted Rick, a feeling he had developed from his time as a sheriff's deputy and one that had grown in the past three years.

Across the churchyard was Glenn, who looked at him with a startled expression. Rick was about to gesture towards him, but Glenn had quickly taken off, leaving both Rick and Morgan confused.

Rick cleared his throat, ignoring what just took place and waiting for Morgan to respond.

"I'll see what I can do. I'm not that much of an expert at welding or designing," Morgan finally answered.

"I'll do whatever I can to help. I would like for this to be a surprise for the rest of the community. But that's probably unlikely," Rick moved towards the cemetery with Morgan hesitantly following behind.

"What does The Kingdom have?" Rick stood in front of the grave marked 'Maggie Rhee.'

"Just some simple white crosses," Morgan went towards the grave dedicated to 'Carol Peletier.' "There didn't use to be as many crosses as there are now."

The pair remained still, letting the winter air blow by them until Morgan broke the silence.

"After the war, I had planned to teach a boy Aikido... or finish teaching him. That was how I planned to spend my time; why I wanted to stay at The Kingdom."

"He died in battle?" Rick came closer to his friend; Morgan confirming this with a nod.

"He insisted on fighting even though I tried to prevent him. I told him that he had a younger brother to look after... I didn't find out until afterwards that he was dead," Tears were streaming down Morgan's face. "I was the one who had to take the body and tell his brother what had happened. Ben wasn't ready to fight. He shouldn't have been there because it wasn't his fight. It was ours."

Rick lowered his head solemnly, knowing that once again he was responsible for this. He had been the one to get The Kingdom involved. He had been the one to say they needed anyone who could help fight, including his own son.

"I'll think of something. It's all I can do anymore. Think," Morgan said, walking away.

"Think of all the ways I failed," Rick whispered, alone in the graveyard.

* * *

"This is going to sting a little," Irene swabbed Rosita's cheek, making her flinch. "Sorry, I know it's uncomfortable."

"It's fine," Rosita replied bluntly.

"Your scar is healing quite well," Irene commented, placing the compact mirror in front of Rosita. "Just be sure to be careful with your stitches. We wouldn't want all that progress to be lost."

Rosita examined the stitches, wanting to touch it, but knowing that wouldn't be good. "Thanks."

"Of course," Irene smiled, starting to put away her equipment. The sound of a door swinging open was heard as Dwight walked into the room.

"Dwight, how is your arm? Is it healing?" Irene had stopped what she was doing and walked over to him. Rosita glared at the man darkly, who took immediate notice of this. He shifted uncomfortably under her gaze as he talked to Irene.

Rosita pulled her cap down lower as she rose from her stool. She roughly pushed past Dwight, interrupting Irene's questions.

"What's your problem, Rosita?" Dwight knew he shouldn't confront her; he should just stay quiet. But he was too hot-headed and impulsive for that.

Rosita instantly snapped her head around, taking his response as a challenge. "You're my problem, Dwight. Your whole presence is."

"Please, let's calm down," Irene interjected, hoping to diffuse the situation. "This isn't the place for this."

The patients nearby had heard the commotion and were staring at the argument in front of them. They were slowly rising out of their beds, going towards where Rosita and Dwight were.

Rosita's eyes narrowed at the man; her rage towards him threatening to spill over. She thought she would be able to accept him; forgive him even. But after everything he had done, after everything he had put them through, he didn't deserve to live here. Each time she saw him, she could only feel hate. These feelings don't just disappear easily and they only grew as the days wore on. He would never be part of their group and it killed her every time to act like he was.

Dwight finally let up, turning away from her. He didn't want to be the same, violent person he once was. He wanted to change. He had to. For Sherry.

Rosita huffed, exiting the infirmary. Irene stood frozen for a few seconds before tending to Dwight again.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what just happened," Irene said, cutting the bandage around Dwight's arm.

"She hates me. And I can't say I blame her," Dwight sighed.

"That nearly turned violent," an Oceanside native named Lisa whispered to the friend beside her.

"What else would you expect from _her_?" Her friend, Rose, replied.

"They're barbaric. These Alexandrians are full of violence," another native named Jessica joined in.

"Speaking of which, the one named Glenn was with her that day," Rose continued, walking back with her friends towards the beds.

"You mean the one who has been-" Lisa gestured to Irene with her head. The women continued their whispering, looking at Irene as they spoke.

However, Irene and Dwight both heard the not-so-discreet conversation.

"Well, that should be all," Irene said quickly, wanting to go confront her friends.

"Oh, thank you," Dwight had been so intent on hearing the women he didn't notice Irene had finished changing his bandage and wrapped it back in the sling. He walked out of the building, wanting to remain for the conversation.

"What is with you all whispering?" Irene demanded. "It is rude, especially when you're talking about me!"

"Oh, Irene. We didn't mean to offend you. But with all that's been happening lately..." Jessica exchanged looks with her fellow women.

"What exactly has been happening?" Irene was growing irritated. As if on cue, Netanya opened the door to the infirmary. She placed the two bats on the ground, hiding them from view.

"Irene, just who I've been wanting to talk to," The woman smiled warmly at her friend.

"Netanya," Irene approached her, full of questions. "Do you know what has been happening? Jessica mentioned-"

"Yes, I do. Very well in fact," Netanya interrupted her. "I thought we would be able to integrate here, but I was foolishly wrong to believe that. I suspected from the beginning Alexandria was behind everything...I should have trusted my initial instinct." She paused, dropping her voice down several octaves. "You do remember what we set out to do, Irene?"

Irene swallowed. "Y-yes, but now everything is good. We're becoming a group."

Netanya laughed at this. "So naïve. But that might just stem from your "caring" nature as a med student. We should have burned Alexandria to the ground as soon as we got back from the base!" Her tone changed drastically.

"N-Netanya, w-why would you say that?" Irene was growing fearful. "Negan is dead; we only hated him and his Saviors. Alexandria helped us get rid of him, now we can live in peace."

"We can never live in peace as long as they- _Glenn_ ishere. After I saw him with a metal bat, I knew it couldn't be a coincidence!"

"It has to be a coincidence!"

"Irene, open your damn eyes! As soon as Glenn and Rosita left, our houses burn a few hours later! And Beatrice is killed?! Killed in a way that Negan was known to kill?! With a weapon that Glenn also has?!" Netanya hastily grabbed the bats and threw them at Irene's feet. They hit the floor with a loud clang that rang throughout the room. Irene could only stare in horror, slowly backing away from the two bats.

"No. No. No. He-" Irene started to cry, unable to accept the fact someone she was beginning to like had destroyed her home, life, and friends.

"You're in denial. Your feelings are clouding your judgment," Lisa hissed in Irene's ear, causing the latter's face to redden.

"I know... We know you liked him, Irene. But he cannot live on in bliss while our sisters are dead because of him. We cannot live in bliss. Not until our sisters and dignity are avenged," Netanya scowled.

"I-I don't like him!" Irene spat. "I see him as a friend. Nothing else." Rose and Jessica snickered at this obvious lie.

Netanya smiled wanly at her exclamation. "That makes things easier for you then. Because friendships can be broken. But the bonds of sisterhood cannot and are not."

Irene's face was hot with anger and embarrassment. Shameful tears spilled out of her eyes as she yelled, "Why does it matter if I like him or not?! Don't I deserve to find love in a world where there is none?! We are human, aren't we?! You may have given us safety, Netanya. But you denied us a life of families and children in exchange!"

Netanya and the other women stared at the display in front of them, stunned at Irene's words. But she wasn't going to stop there. She was going to deliver the final blow to her former leader; all the pent up frustration about to be released.

"And that makes you just the same as Negan!"

An instant hit to Irene's face knocked her down. Netanya trembled with rage, holding the nail bat's front end in front of her.

Irene clutched her face where the wooden handle had hit, crying out in pain. The other women made no attempt to help her, only concerning themselves with Netanya.

"She's a med student. She can take care of herself," Jessica said, looking down at the bleeding woman at the ground pitifully.

Irene struggled to her feet, doing her best to treat herself. The women had left, taking the bats with them. She was alone.

There would be no help for her; there was no knight in shining armor coming.

* * *

The sense that something was brewing grew stronger for Rick as each day passed.

It had started out subtle; a few scowls and glances at Glenn from the Oceanside women. The change in atmosphere could have easily been explained as getting adjusted to the calm before the storm. They had just fought a war; everyone would be on edge for a while.

Things were expected to be tense.

But then a mysterious wound appeared on Irene's face. She claimed to have fallen and bruised herself. Rick asked if someone was beating her; he had heard that excuse too many times before to know she was lying. Of course, she denied this.

Soon after, harsh, low mutterings from the Oceanside women began and always were unheard of from Rick.

Until one day he finally overheard what they had been saying.

He was the one responsible for the displacement of the Oceanside women and the murder of the bludgeoned woman.

And just like the fire Glenn allegedly started, this rumor spread around Alexandria instantly.

* * *

Glenn didn't need to hear what the women were whispering to know what was being said.

It was becoming unbearable to go outside because each time he did the women were always around.

But coming back to his house was harrowing. He was sure Negan was lurking somewhere in the dark, waiting for him.

Granted, he hadn't heard him since that one time. Yet he was sure he would hear (and see) more of him very soon.

Yes, a big change was coming to Alexandria and the surrounding communities.

* * *

"I've heard your accusations against Glenn and you need to stop. NOW," Rick demanded as he pushed Netanya aside in the doorway.

"They're not accusations at all. They're facts," Netanya said matter-of-factly.

"Glenn would never do that!" Rick's hand reflexively ghosted across the salvaged Colt Python at his side. "He's the most compassionate and kindhearted person here! Not like you would understand those words."

"Then we must have seen a different Glenn than the one at the base," Netanya stated slyly. "The Glenn we saw was bloodthirsty and merciless."

"You need to stop this. Or I'll be sure to," Rick threatened.

"Cindy! Bring them to me!" Netanya called to her granddaughter. Footsteps were heard upstairs, shuffling around. Rick could only stare at the woman in front of him with complete and utter anger.

If this bitch thought she could just come in and start making accusations against one of his own and get people to ostracize him, then she had another thing coming.

Cindy flew down the stairs with the two bats in her hands, wanting to get them out of her hands as soon as possible.

"Here you go, grandmother," Cindy passed them along.

"And? Did you just figure out he had these?" Rick asked, unconvinced.

"The timeline of what happened at Oceanside matches with his arrival. I believe...I know he arrived to enlist our help and when we didn't agree to that he framed The Saviors for the fire and murder of Beatrice. He knew our history with Negan and he predicted that we would help you all if The Saviors attacked us again," Netanya's scowl matched Rick's.

"How did you even get these? I know he didn't give them to you. _Willingly_ ," Rick snatched the bats from her grasp.

"My granddaughter stole them from his house. I asked her to." Cindy looked down at her feet, ashamed that she had broken into Glenn's house on behalf of her grandmother.

"So you start this witch hunt to cover for your actual crimes? I know all about you, Netanya," Rick got in closer to her, making her tense up. "How you tried to kill Tara. How you wanted to seek vengeance on Alexandria," His hand went to his side again; the murderous feelings consuming his thoughts and actions.

"Maybe all of Alexandria was behind this. Maybe even Hilltop," Netanya snarled. Cindy looked at the adults in terror, leaving the hallway and going into the kitchen to get away from it all.

"You already served your purpose here. Don't think for a second you're not expendable," Rick backed away with the bats in hand.

"I hoped to have a civil discussion, Rick. I hoped we could come to some sort of compromise," Netanya feigned a sigh.

"You know we are past compromises."

"'Then how do you expect to rebuild society? Isn't that what your people wanted?"

"We do. But we're not going to rebuild with people like you," Rick stated, turning to leave this horrid woman.

"All I want, what my women want is justice. If it's one thing we can both agree on, it's that we need to rebuild. That's how a civilization wor-" But Rick had already left her house before she could finish her sentence.

* * *

Justice.

What did that word even mean now?

Rick remembered in his law enforcement days that it stood for fairness and protection and the punishment of wrongdoings.

But in this world, was justice even applicable?

Rick looked up at Glenn's house to see him staring back at him from the top window.

Maybe like the statue itself, he was blindfolded to what his friend had become.

The sense of justice he abandoned long ago was creeping back into his heart along with the desire to rebuild.

Glenn looked down on his friend sadly, seeing the weapons he carried. He knew it was only a matter of time before the sword of justice fell upon him and all his friends' blindfolds were lifted off to see exactly what he's become.


	21. 스물 하나 Two Steps From Hell

"Make sure you've got something worth dying for."

~Rosita Espinosa

No one wanted to acknowledge what was presented on the table.

As soon as Rick had laid the objects down, their eyes shifted up, down, left, and right; just anywhere but at the table.

"Why did you bring these here?" Rosita had her hand to her mouth and her head turned away from Rick.

"Netanya had these. She stole them from Glenn..." He answered, looking around the room, digesting each response his friends gave him. They continued to look away, feeling as though if they even made eye-contact with the bats, a horrible truth would be revealed. They wanted to deny the ominous air that had been brought in with the January winds.

"I know you've heard the whispers," Rick looked deeply at Michonne, but was addressing this to everyone in the room.

"He would never do that," Michonne finally lifted her head towards the table.

"Yeah, these women are just looking for a scapegoat," Tara quipped.

"Then why can't you all bring yourselves to look at me...or the table?" Rick's question made everyone tense up even more.

"You sound like you believe those women," Rosita spat, turning to face Rick. "What do they know about Glenn-about us?"

"I think it's worth looking into. See what Glenn has to say about all this," Rick continued, searching within him to find why exactly he wanted to partake in this. Why investigate the claims of a murderous and strange group of women who have wanted to kill his people at one point?

"These women... they've done nothin' but stir up trouble," Abraham thought aloud. "They shouldn't stay a minute longer here."

"We can't just kick them out," Gabriel glanced worriedly at Rick. "Even if they are doing all this, that isn't who we are, Rick."

Rosita scowled; the memory of what happened that night at Oceanside overwhelming her. She had tried so hard to forget the scent of blood and smoke, finding this solution in a bottle and destroying her liver in the process. She hated the Oceanside women and wanted them out of Alexandria. But she hated herself for being the reason they were here, and for keeping what she knew since that night a secret from Rick.

"Glenn didn't do anything," She firmly lied. At that moment, she didn't believe she was lying. She firmly wanted to believe Glenn was not the monster the women painted him out to be; that what she saw that night was all a dream. A terrible, deceitful dream. "I was there that night and he was with me the whole time. Why aren't they accusing me then? Why just Glenn?" Rosita strode over to Rick slowly. "You know why. You know how they are. They already have something against men, thinking they're all evil. They can't be trusted."

"What do you propose we do then?" Aaron asked, wanting to get past these ridiculous rumors. "Have a trial or something? Prove he's guilty or not." He only meant this jokingly, but Rick thought otherwise.

"...Yeah, I think that we should." Immediately everyone started shouting at Rick's response.

"Are you pulling my leg?!" Abraham exclaimed.

"Dad, you're not a sheriff anymore!" Carl crossed his arms over his chest.

"We couldn't do that to him, Rick!" Michonne pleaded.

"I didn't mean that! I was-I wasn't serious," Aaron startled.

"It's not right!" Gabriel raised his voice for once in his life.

"Is he some kind of war criminal now?!" Rosita couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Then we would have to have trials for all of us!" Tara proclaimed.

"We want to rebuild, right? This is how we do it. The new world needs a justice system," Rick's past livelihood called back to him as he thought of this 'trial.'

"Who would even be the jury?" Abraham looked outraged at the idea, feeling as if this was unfair to his friend. "Sure as hell couldn't be those women."

"It would be us, this council," Rick was vividly beginning to imagine this in his mind. How it would all go down, but of course it would all go awry as did most of his plans.

"This makes no sense. Do you want him to be guilty?" Tara brought her hand to her temple.

"No! I want him to...I believe it must go this way so he will have a fair and just trial," Rick answered, gauging their responses once again. They didn't seem too keen on this proposal- at all.

"Then we have to have everyone here..." Michonne stated hesitantly.

"You haven't even asked Glenn if he did it or not and you're already..." Carl walked off, disgusted with his dad's sense of justice and morality.

"He's right, You're already thinking Glenn is guilty," Tara shook her head, following Carl.

"He's one of us. He's been with you from the beginning, he saved you," Michonne whispered angrily. "And you just abandon him like that. How many times did we defend you? When did we ever abandon you? I know Maggie didn't that time against the Alexandrians."

"Michonne, that's not at all what I want to do. I just want to do what's best for the commu-" But she had already left before Rick could finish his sentence.

Gabriel looked at Rick regretfully before leaving. One by one everyone exited, too upset to even consider an option like this.

This left only Abraham, Rosita, and Rick.

"You're better than this. Negan's philosophy messed you up," Abraham turned towards the door.

"No, but this is how civilization works. How it always has," Rick felt hopeless at that moment.

"I am a firm believer in justice. But this... This ain't justice," Abraham finally left, disappointed in his leader.

Rick could only go to his window, forgetting temporarily Rosita was still there. She had her back propped against the wall, watching him silently.

Rick looked down at the street below his house; his mind a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions. He didn't blame the group for feeling this way. It did seem like he was siding with the Oceanside women over his longtime friend.

A sharp ache came across his heart at Michonne's words, remembering Maggie and all she had done for him.

And how was he honoring her?

By wanting to put her husband, who had been through intensive trauma and grief, on trial over spiteful rumors.

"She should be here...leading these people... with Glenn and her child," He muttered sorrowfully.

"But you're here now," Rosita said from behind him. "I've been lying to you...to myself," She approached Rick; the latter wiping his eyes free of tears.

"I was just so angry. With Negan, with the situation we were in...With myself. I kept quiet because I knew we didn't need any more problems. But even then, I was angry with Glenn for what he did," Rosita let her secrets be known to Rick and she did not stop.

"Glenn wasn't there the whole night. I woke up to find him missing... I thought someone or something had gotten him. But then he came back and I knew something was wrong. He seemed almost robotic... that's not like him to not have any emotion. I could smell smoke and-and blood on him. Then I saw the stains... they were all over his clothes... and I knew he had done something bad..."

Rick listened intently as she went on, wanting to hold onto every word she said.

"I had seen him hide something in the car... I never knew what it was... But when I asked about the stains and smell, he started crying. And what he said next still haunts me..."

"What did he say?" Rick looked at her deeply, preparing himself for a truth that had been a long time coming.

"What he did was for all of us. Rick, I'm sorry, I should have told you from the beginning. I wanted to, but we had more important problems..." Rosita lowered her head, tears spilling down her cheeks. The shame and guilt that had been repressed had finally released.

Rick slowly let this revelation flow through his being; accepting that the accusations were indeed true.

He let his hand wipe her tears away, lifting her head up as he did this. Their eyes met for a few seconds before he leaned into her, pressing his forehead onto hers.

"I understand why you didn't... Thank you for telling me now," He whispered.

She relished in the comfort of their proximity. "Glenn's still a part of our family... what he did.. I would have done too if it came to that."

Rick remained silent, thinking of what he should say or if he should pull away from her. But her mouth was already on his, offering him a gentle kiss.

The world was still.

Time had slowed.

Everything was right in Alexandria.

And their heartbeats were the only sound that could be heard in this moment.

She wasn't sure why she did this, she felt she would never again get a moment like this. However, the realization of her actions caused her to back away. She felt foolish, thinking Rick would react badly to this sudden affection.

But he only blinked at her and smiled softly, wanting to continue

"Ricckkkk?" Abraham's jaw was slack from what he had just witnessed.

"Shit!" Rosita turned towards Abraham, expecting him to confront Rick. Rick broke his embrace, embarrassed at the situation he found himself in.

"Don't even start, Abraham!" She glared at the redhead, before pushing him aside.

"I just came to tell you I was going to visit Sasha..." Abraham said, dumbfounded.

* * *

Rosita was on a collision course with anyone who stood in her way. She marched down the street, attracting the attention of several people nearby. Tara was on her patio, rocking in a chair when she saw her visibly vexed friend.

Tara leaped out of the chair, running hurriedly over to see what was going on.

"Hey! What's wrong?" Tara asked, breathlessly.

"Rick and-" Rosita closed her mouth, thinking maybe she shouldn't say anything about what just happened. It was between her and Rick, and no one else needed to know. What had happened did not need to be ruined further.

"What did Rick do?" Tara looked concerned, placing a hand on Rosita's shoulder. But Rosita already had her gaze fixed on the two people heading towards her.

Dwight and Sherry.

"What's been going on around here?" Sherry looked at Tara and Rosita with puzzlement. "We've noticed something has been happening...but no one's told us what..."

"Why would we tell you?" Rosita snarked.

"Because we live here too. We have a right to know," Dwight spoke up before Sherry could.

"You might live here, but you're not- and never be part of this community," Rosita scowled. "You lost that right a long time ago."

"Without Sherry or me, your community would still be working for The Saviors!" Dwight shouted, fed up with her attitude.

"Without you, people would still be alive! Daryl, Maggie..." Rosita turned her head towards Tara. "Denise." The injury struck not only Dwight, but Tara as well. The memory of her girlfriend's short life brought her to tears, recalling how much she cared for her.

"...Rosita...I was once with the enemy too..." Tara stated weakly.

"Yeah? But you didn't screw shit up for everyone by eagerly being Negan's little bitch," Rosita balled her hands into fists. "You're past redemption, Dwight. The moment you shot that arrow-"

"Shut up! I know what I did!" Dwight growled.

"...What did you do?" Sherry looked at her husband, afraid of his answer.

"Sherry, you know I had to do some awful things. But-" Dwight pleaded, before being interrupted.

"But you shot an arrow from Daryl's crossbow into Denise's eye in front of Daryl and me. An arrow meant for Daryl. You stole so many things from Daryl like the bike you forced me to retrieve. You trapped Daryl, Glenn, Michonne, and me before taking us to that lineup," Rosita steadied her voice from yelling, something that proved to be even more menacing.

"...You never told me how she died," Tara finally broke down, sobbing uncontrollably into her hands.

Sherry could only look at her husband in horror. "I knew you did some awful things... I did too. But look what you've become... because of me," Her voice started to crack. "You've killed and become everything you didn't want to be..."

"Honey, that's not true," Dwight tried to gather her into his arms, but she pushed him away, devastated about what she just learned.

Rosita could look on with a hardened gaze, muttering, "I wish Eugene would have bitten your nuts off.."

Dwight immediately turned towards Rosita and charged at her with a violent fury. However, due to her extensive training, she dodged his attack and punched him straight across the face.

Dwight fell back, while Tara tried restraining Rosita. Sherry, still loyal to her husband, went to his side immediately.

"Bitch," Dwight rubbed his jaw, while Sherry glared at the woman who had punched him. She was about to tell her off when Rick came running up to them.

"Alright. This ends now. I don't care what happened as long as it's over," He glowered severely at the couple. "We have a bigger problem right now, which I'm heading over to fix. So get up, get bandaged, and everyone else can get lost."

* * *

 _No. No. No._

 _Not this again._

 _Glenn struggled to get up from his knees, but he couldn't. It was as if his arms and legs were tied down by an invisible force. As was his group around him._

 _They had a full view of an even more terrifying Negan. This Negan was a bloody and decaying monstrosity; barely recognizable to be human. In his hand, was an equally bloody and cracked Lucille._

 _"You thought you could escape me? You thought you could escape this?" Negan taunted, pointing his bat down at Glenn._

 _"Face it, boy. You ARE ME!" Negan bellowed._

 _A_ _s soon as he shouted that, extreme heat and pain shot through Glenn's body. It felt like his skin was melting. Like his head was being bashed in._

 _A hoarse shriek erupted from Glenn's mouth; the only sound he could make from his suffering._

 _"What you did to those poor women, to poor Gregory, to my poor Saviors. It was all for the greater good, right? " Negan's grin widened as Glenn's agony intensified._

 _"You think you're some sort of hero? Some sort of savior? Is that what your conscience tells you to help you sleep at night? " Negan pressed Lucille down onto Glenn's shoulder deeply._

 _"But you know the difference between me and you? I wasn't weak. I commanded respect. I earned my place at the top of the food chain!" Negan discarded Lucille to the side suddenly, grabbing Glenn's face between his fingers and pulling him close to his own._

 _Glenn shut his eyes tightly, squirming at this unbearable torment._

 _But then the rough, leathered touch turned into a soft, gentle one._

 _When he gathered enough courage to finally open his eyes again, he saw his wife. She looked just like the day he met her; beautiful and smiling._

 _"Maggie," He whispered, hardly believing what stood in front of him._

 _"Us humans are so weak, aren't we?" Her bright green eyes glowed, gazing lovingly at him._

 _"We give up, we run away, we lie, we kill, we turn on each other so easily." Her hands wiped away every stray tear that ran down his face. "We fail to protect the ones we love."_

 _"But it's our love for others... for people who don't deserve it... that redeems us. That makes us strong. It was my love for you that allowed us to create such a beautiful child." She brought his hands to her stomach, placing hers on top of his._

 _"You're strong, Glenn. Stronger than you give yourself credit for. I've always known you were. That's why I fell in love with you," Maggie brought her mouth closer to his, murmuring her calming words._

 _"I can't be strong anymore!" Glenn sobbed, shaking with each breath he took. "I only could because I had you!"_

 _"Then look to the past. Remember the times we spent together on the farm. In the prison. On the road. In Alexandria." She leaned her heard into the crook of his neck. A calmness filled him as the scenery changed to their days on the farm. A place where he had been the happiest._

 _"Know that I never lost my love for you."_

The knocking on the door woke up Glenn from his slumber. He groaned, feeling a dull pain in his heart.

He remembered being in great sorrow in his dream, but he couldn't remember anything else. Only that it had shaken him to his core.

"Hold on, I'm coming!" He called out as he dashed down the stairs. He opened the door to find a disgruntled Rick on his doorstep.

"May I help you?" Glenn asked, baffled as to why Rick was here so serious-looking.

"Can I come in?" Rick raised his eyebrow expectedly.

"Sure," Glenn stepped aside, leading Rick to the den.

"I'm just gonna cut to the chase and ask you upfront. Have you heard the rumors about you?" Rick sat down on the sofa, never breaking his gaze from Glenn.

"...Yeah, I have," Glenn scratched the back of his head, knowing exactly where this was going.

"Can you deny them?"

"Rick, seriously? You know me. You really believe I would do something like that?"

"I don't, but I just wanted to make sure. But you still haven't answered the question."

"...No, of course I didn't do that," Glenn answered, cracking a smile. "That's insane," He started to laugh, causing Rick to do the same.

"I know right? Once I heard, I told myself Glenn would be the last person to do that!"

"Exactly!" The pair continued laughing at the absurdity of the situation. Rick shifted a little in his as his laughter died down, showing a metallic object attached to his belt.

Glenn's laughter immediately quieted when he saw the handcuffs, but he acted like he hadn't noticed them.

"So what were you going to do if I had admitted to these rumors?" Glenn asked incredulously.

"Well, I was planning to have a trial of sorts. Take you down to the church and hear you confess to the council, made up of myself and our closest friends."

"Then-" Glenn's mouth snapped shut as the memory of his dream was recalled to him. His eyes began to water and he started to tremble at what his wife had told him.

"I'm sorry..." He whispered, dropping his head. "I'm not the man you love... not anymore."

"What?!" Rick leaned in closer to hear what Glenn was talking about.

Glenn slowly raised his head; tears streaming down his face with an unhinged gleam in his eye.

"Then I wasted your time here. Because I have much more to confess to."

Rick sank in his chair as he looked across at his friend. He had come here, expecting Glenn to admit to what he did. When he didn't, he believed for a second that Glenn truly was innocent. That's how much he considered him a friend. He was still going to take him to the church without the handcuffs to clear things up with Rosita's story and Netanya's accusations. But then...

Glenn stuck out his wrists, anticipating Rick to handcuff him.

"Aren't you going to read me my Miranda Rights?"

* * *

The walk to the church was a long one.

At least to Rick, it was.

He could barely move as he escorted a handcuffed Glenn; each step for him a tremendous effort.

Glenn, however, was basking in the shocked gazes from the Alexandrians. He wore a smug expression on his face, making sure everyone knew just what he was capable of.

Netanya smirked at the display that came marching up to them in front of the church. Glenn matched her expression, not giving her the satisfaction.

Netanya's eyes burned with rage when she saw this act of defiance. "You thought you would get away with this? I'm going to make sure you're hung!" She pointed her finger at Glenn angrily.

Glenn ignored her, while Rick told her that would never happen.

"Glenn!" Sherry came from the infirmary with Dwight and Irene in tow. Rick and Glenn both turned to face the frantic woman.

"You didn't do this right?!" Sherry cried out. Dwight only looked at his wife and Glenn in pity, knowing just what men were capable of. Irene was sniffling in the background, deliberately ignoring the arrested man.

"Take the handcuffs off of him!" Sherry demanded. "He's your friend isn't he?!"

"We're going to sort this out inside," Rick turned Glenn back around and led him inside.

* * *

The whole community was there; people squished in to make enough room for this first-ever hearing.

Rick stood in the middle of the pulpit, Michonne, Rosita, and Aaron on his right. Gabriel, Tara, and Carl on his left. Glenn stood below them; his hands free of the restraints.

"Order! Order!" Rick called out to the buzzing crowd. Only when there was absolute silence did he continue.

"This is the immediate trial for Glenn Rhee vs. The Oceanside Community. The accusations made are that he has committed arson, destruction of property, and premeditated murder. Do you admit or deny these accusations?"

"I admit to these accusations," Glenn stated, causing the crowd to roar up in shock and anger. Even the council could barely contain their anguish at this.

"ORDER!" Rick slammed his fist on the pulpit. "Glenn Rhee, state your reasoning for admitting to this..."

"I committed these crimes," Glenn sighed. "We lacked numbers to fight in the war and this was the only way to get those numbers. I tried to get Oceanside to join us first by talking, but they were too stubborn. I calculated their hate against Negan would benefit us so I started a fire and killed one of their women with my own bat. I made it look like The Saviors had done it."

The room was too shocked to react, but Tara broke the silence with her sobs. She collapsed to her knees, unable to stop crying for her involvement in this. She had only been thinking of her rage and pain at that moment, and not of what could come after she spoke about Oceanside.

"Tara, don't blame yourself," Glenn regarded her sadly, but the former could only look back at him with indignation.

"Is it true you were with Rosita that night?" Rick went on, swallowing his anguish.

"Yes, but she was not involved. She knew nothing of what I planned to do." Rosita raised her head to look at the stained glass windows, trying to prevent her tears from flowing.

"So how did you plan that you would burn and kill this community?" Rick felt so miserable he wanted to die. "I mean, how did you know you would have to do this?"

"Nothing is ever easy in this world. Not anymore. I had already built the bats I would use to kill Negan with. And from anything I've learned, people only react when blood's spilled... If it matters any, I knocked out the woman before I killed her."

This sent the room back into madness. One half of the church calling for Glenn's head and the other half trying to rationalize this admission.

"Do you regret what you've done?" Tara shook with fury.

"No. I regret that it came to that...and right after it happened I did cry. But I would do it again if got me the same result."

"Anything else you would like to add?" Rick wanted to end this as soon as possible to deliberate a verdict.

"...I lied about Gregory. He never pulled a gun on me. I pulled one on him. I knew Hilltop would never be our ally without either Sasha or Jesus as the leader."

Sasha, who had just come back from Hilltop with Abraham, heard this from the entrance. She strolled over Glenn, mustering all her strength to stand in front of him.

"What?" She was in denial of what had just been said.

"That's how you became the leader of Hilltop... I had planned for Gregory to die," He didn't shift his eyes away when he saw the tears building up in hers.

Sasha shook her head, lowering her face so her cries wouldn't be seen. Abraham went up to comfort her and looked as if he was about to sock Glenn in the eye. But he restrained himself as Sasha needed him more at the moment.

Glenn glanced at the council, who had lost all control of their emotions. The shock, rage, grief, pain, and disappointment had weighed too heavily on them; had taken too much of a toll on their already unstable minds.

All except for Carl. He was staring at Glenn with an unreadable expression.

"I also manipulated Enid. I knew how she felt about me and I used that so she could help me," Glenn finished. "That's all."

An expression of absolute hatred shadowed Carl's face when he heard this. "You deserve to die then."

At these words, Glenn lowered his head. He wanted to break down along with his friends, if he could consider them that anymore. A strange thought crossed his mind; the last time they had wept like this was at the lineup. When they were all companions of death, circled around Negan. Now they have broken again and circled around Glenn.

"That concludes this s-session. We will decide on a sentence soon. T-The court is adjourned," Rick walked off from the pew to place the handcuffs on Glenn. He didn't resist.

Sherry and Dwight were paralyzed in their seats. Sherry wanted to scream at Rick as he led Glenn out of the church that he should just arrest the both of them then. They weren't innocent either by his logic. But she didn't, she just sat in distress alongside a husband who had done similar things. As for Dwight, he felt nauseous at the brutality of the crimes and at the shattered image that remained of Glenn. He too wanted to confess to everything he did because he had no more of a right to be a free man than Glenn. None of these people did. They were all guilty of something; something that made them less of what they had been.

* * *

Glenn could only stare straight ahead as Rick led him to an unknown destination. A crowd was following them, but Rick paid no attention to them.

He didn't even speak to Glenn once. Glenn was fine with that.

Glenn wasn't going to lie to himself that it didn't hurt how his friends had all turned their backs on him. But he didn't blame them, even if they were as guilty as him.

In Alexandria, everyone was in the same boat.

Rick's mind was occupied with only one thought: how things had gone so wrong. He had led them to that point; the only thing he seemed to be good at as a leader.

They had reached a house, a house that had belonged to Morgan when he lived there. Carefully, Rick led Glenn down the steps into the lower floor. This was the best option for now until the council decided what would happen to Glenn.

"This is a nice change of scenery," Glenn stated, taking in the cell that loomed in front of them.

A/N: Rick and Michonne are not a couple in this story by the way (don't think he cheated on her). So none of the canon romance that happened between them happened here. I, personally, ship Rick and Rosita and have for a long time. 


	22. 스물 둘 See What I've Become

"He was one of the good things, too."

~Maggie Greene (Rhee)

"This is a nice change of scenery," Glenn mocked, examining the cell in front of them.

"It's a prison cell," Rick cast a weary look towards the other man.

"I was being sarcastic," Glenn glowered. His eyes were growing darker as each second passed. "So am I supposed to live my life here? As one prisoner to another?"

"No, I want to meet with the council to discuss a sentence. It won't be a life sentence or anything like that. It'll be one that fits the crime. I plan to have you in here a few yea-"

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW?" Glenn lunged at Rick, punching him in the teeth. Instantly, Rick's mouth started to bleed.

"THE ONE WHO SHOULD BE LOCKED UP IS YOU! WHAT I DID ISN'T ANY DIFFERENT THAN WHAT YOU DID! THAN WHAT ANYONE HAS DONE!" Glenn never gave Rick the chance to defend himself, continuing to hit him over and over.

"G-Glenn! S-Stop!" Rick blocked his fist, kicking him away. He got up shakily, wiping away the blood on his face.

"THINK ABOUT IT, RICK! I TRIED FIXING THE MESS YOU PUT US IN AS A LEADER! YOU WERE THE ONE WHO THOUGHT WE SHOULD GO TO WAR WITH THE SAVIORS! YOU WERE THE ONE WHO PUT MAGGIE INTO THE RV TO SEE THE DOCTOR AT HILLTOP! WHY? BECAUSE YOU LUSTED AFTER A WOMAN WHO WAS MARRIED TO THE ONLY DOCTOR HERE! YOU WERE THE ONE WHO PROVOKED HIM AND KILLED HIM! Glenn took a step closer to Rick with each sentence he completed, cornering the former. "YOU ARE THE ONE HERE WITH BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS!"

"YOU MIGHT AS WELL HAVE KILLED HER YOURSELF!" Glenn's voice suddenly dropped. "And I should have never made you leader."

Rick's hand reacted before his mind could. He struck Glenn across the cheek, sending him against the wall.

"SHUT UP! YOU DON'T THINK I KNOW THAT?" Rick roared, shoving Glenn with all his might.

"ME BEING HERE IS PROOF YOU DON'T!" Glenn collided his body with Rick's; both tumbling to the ground.

"I'm not- I never meant-" Rick said in-between breaths as he got out of Glenn's grasp. He pushed Glenn once again against the wall, not allowing him to fight back. Rick subdued him, putting enough pain onto the man's body to let it buckle under his restraint. Glenn sank to the floor, sobbing into the palms of his hands. Rick slowly backed away, trying to get out of the cell before Glenn snapped again.

Suddenly, Glenn sprang back up and threw himself at Rick with a look of murder in his eyes. Rick slammed the cell door shut just as Glenn's fingers reached the bars. He latched onto the bars and shook them with a violent fury as Rick locked the cell.

"I'm sorry this happened to you," Rick said somberly, never taking his eyes off Glenn's. Glenn only panted as he saw Rick's tears meet the blood streaks, washing them away.

Rick could only lower his head in shame and overwhelming guilt as he left Glenn in the dark cell.

* * *

Her walk mimicked one of a walker. Her back was arched; she couldn't stand or hold her head up straight.

The bag around her arm swayed with each heavy step she took. Its contents filled with things that belonged to Alexandria, not to her.

The stretch to the gates seemed like a long one, but she had all the time in the world.

Or maybe she had none. Maybe her time had run out.

It made no difference.

She reached the gate in what seemed like an eternity, using all of her strength to open it. There was no guard and she didn't expect differently.

She threw her bag into the back of the truck she had arrived in, pausing to steady herself on the tailgate.

"Heading back to Hilltop already?" A voice called from behind her.

Sasha didn't need to turn to know who it belonged to. "I'm not going to Hilltop. I'm leaving... away from here. And I don't care where I end up."

"But I care," Abraham went up beside her, taking out her bag. Sasha quickly grabbed onto it and tugged it out of his grasp.

"Jesus can lead. He should have from the beginning..." Sasha brushed by the man towards the driver's side. "His claim to Hilltop would have at least been genuine and not built on a lie."

"Sasha, is that the whole reason you're leaving?" Abraham followed her, preventing her from getting into the truck.

Sasha shook her head disappointedly. "No... not all of it. But all of this...what was it even all for?"

"We won a war...We couldn't have done that without you, Sasha."

"You weren't there when it happened, Abe." The events Sasha was talking about didn't register in Abraham's mind until after she stopped talking.

"I could have just accepted our new life like Rick did. It would have been so much easier to just give up... I wanted to. I never had a chance to grieve for Maggie! Instead, I pushed my grief aside and rose up to fight. I wasn't going to let her murderer-her child's murderer walk away! But I focused on me, Abe! Not her husband! We all focused on our rage and vengeance when Glenn needed us most! I failed- I failed her!" Sasha fell to her knees; her grief finally engulfing her after months of being repressed. "She would have wanted us to look after him!"

Abraham could only wrap his arms protectively around her, falling to the ground beside her. He said nothing; only listening to her sob incoherently over how she failed not only as a leader, but as a best friend.

* * *

Rosita's fingers brushed across her lips absentmindedly. Her eyes were cast towards the pulpit, but her mind was elsewhere.

Her mind kept racing over everything that occurred in the last 24 hours.

Glenn. The trial. Dwight. Rick.

Her mouth twitched into a small at the last thought, but quickly turned into a grimace at the thought of Glenn.

She slammed her fist against the pew in front of her, cursing herself for her folly and cowardice. She could have done more for Glenn; she should have prevented all of this.

"And here I was always mad at Eugene for being cowardly...when I was the real coward," She choked, lowering her head so her tears would fall straight down.

"Rosita," Father Gabriel sat beside her, looking at her concernedly. "You're not a coward. You're one of the bravest people I know. What happened wasn't your fault; it is the tragedy of life."

"I thought our lives would be worthwhile...I thought we would finally earn our happy ending," Rosita reflected on her moment with Rick. "And for a moment I believed it."

"We can still have that. This was just a bump in the road. I plan to ask Rick to show mercy towards Glenn. He is part of that happy ending and it is the right thing to do," Gabriel looked sentimentally at the woman next to him.

"Everyone that died... deserves to be in my place. Things could have turned out differently. Eugene could still be alive. Carol, Daryl, Enid, Maggie, her kid- Glenn wouldn't be in some dark cell! He wouldn't be this..."

Gabriel leaned in closer to Rosita, whose eyes burned with hot tears. " Rosita, even this fool can see you belong here. That we need you. Just like we need Glenn. He is the most hopeful person here and we can't lose him... I believe that he can return to us. You and he are both worthwhile."

"He is. But I don't really know why I'm even here... I screwed up too many times. And seeing Glenn like this is my greatest regret. Well, it's up there with how I treated Eugene," Rosita folded her arms over her chest.

"Eugene gave his life to ensure we could live on. Don't pity what happened between you two. Instead, see his sacrifice. Just like I see what Glenn did as a sacrifice."

"Sacrifice? How did Glenn sacrifice..?" Rosita was at a loss for words.

"I don't know for certain, but I believe he did what he did so that none of us would have to. He is the sole one carrying this weight of guilt over Oceanside."

Rosita remained silent, mulling over this. Finally, she asked, "How can you stay so positive when everything is burning in hell-fire?"

"Our hearts are still beating and anything is possible as long as they don't stop. We still have a purpose."

* * *

Eric leaned in the doorway, watching Aaron drink a glass of whiskey. Aaron ignored his presence, tipping the glass back instead. He let the sensation burn his tongue, let it burn down his pain and memories.

"And you didn't think to pour me a glass?" Eric questioned, moving in closer into the living room where Aaron sat.

Aaron continued to ignore him, staring at the glass in his hand dazedly.

"I thought you didn't drink," Eric furrowed his brows.

"I don't," Aaron retorted, moving to fill his glass back up. Eric grabbed his arm, preventing him from doing so.

"I saw the packed clothes. So you're finally leaving me?" Eric released his grip, sinking down beside him.

"We can both go. Leave Alexandria and-" Aaron started to say, but was interrupted.

"And ride off into the sunset?" Eric smiled. "I wished, but we both know that isn't possible."

"Not anymore. It doesn't work like that anymore," Aaron said quietly before breaking down. Eric, albeit surprised, moved in to comfort him.

"I don't want to leave this place, not really. But what happened wasn't justice...despite what Rick said. I don't think I can stay here knowing how things are."

"Things have always been that way. Even before all this happened. You of all people should know justice doesn't exist. Neither in this world or the old one."

"I thought it did...Or at least it could here," Aaron stated sadly.

Eric thought about this for a moment, knowing that what he was about to say could do more harm than good. "I never wanted to go to war with The Saviors. I wanted both of us alive and there was a possibility that wouldn't happen if we fought them again. But I decided to because of you. Daryl was our close friend. I knew you cared a lot about Maggie. You wouldn't have let this go; it would have eaten you up..."

Aaron remained silent, looking straight ahead at nothing in particular. "I just want- I need to know if we- if I made the right decision. Because right now-" Aaron's voice started to crack. "I feel so lost."

"The only thing we're allowed to do is believe we won't regret the choice we made. And whatever you believe- whatever you choose I'll be with you. I don't regret what I choose. I'll weep and grieve for what's happened. But I'll never regret."

Aaron swallowed his emotions, taking in every word Eric said. "Okay... I think I'll be alright.. not today or anytime soon. But we're together and that alone is something that will make me smile again... one day."

* * *

The katana sliced through every and any walker that stood in Michonne's path. A trail of their headless bodies followed her from outside of Alexandria's walls to a field with an abandoned car.

There weren't enough walkers in Alexandria to quench her anguish; to silence her pain.

She sheathed her sword, climbing atop the car. She looked into the open field that glowed amongst the setting sun. She imagined the field in flames, burning the forest that stood a few feet away. She envisioned the night Oceanside burnt to ash right before her eyes.

She didn't even realize she was crying, but her wet cheeks said otherwise. Alone and far away, Michonne let herself grieve after so long of hiding it. There had never been a private moment, a quiet moment to do so.

The low growl of a walker snapped her back to the present; the stumbling being coming straight towards the car.

She wiped her eyes, preparing her katana once again. She had just jumped off the car when the whizz of an arrow hit the walker in the skull. Dwight stood in the forest line, but this did not convince Michonne to lower her sword.

"I could have handled it, you know," Michonne called out to him, placing the weapon back in its case. She stood by the car warily, unsure of what Dwight was up to.

"I know." Dwight sat down on the opposite side of the car, his back leaning up against its side. "But I also wanted to take out some of my anger."

"Oh," Michonne nodded, understanding he had seen the bodies. There was an awkward silence between them; both unsure what to say now.

"Why are you angry?" Michonne asked, sliding down to lean up against the car as well. "I thought you had gotten everything you wanted."

"I thought I did too. Until today," Dwight sighed; a deep sadness coming over him. Michonne shared in that same sadness, remaining quiet for a few moments.

"...I should hate Glenn like I should hate you. You forced us into this. This happened... all of this... happened because of you. But I don't. I can't," Michonne tilted her head back, shutting her eyes.

"I'm used to people hating me by now... and it's alright. I hate myself too. And I know you all can forgive Glenn. I know eventually you all will forgive me because that's who you all are. But I don't think I can ever forgive myself."

Michonne let these words hang between them; unable to say anything more because right now she couldn't forgive Dwight. So they just sat in peaceful silence, listening to nature's sounds for the first time.

* * *

Deep in the woods, Carl sat at the hidden place he had shared with Enid. He had his father's Colt Python with him, which had somehow survived the battle at the Sanctuary somehow.

He cleaned it from the blood and grime it had collected, focusing on nothing else but the task at hand. When he had finished that, he started reloading the chamber. Rage was his driving force right now. He believed he was past the point of grief and sorrow and could only experience wrath.

After everything that happened,

At the sound of approaching footsteps, Carl quickly raised the gun in its direction. This time he would be the one to kill; this time he wouldn't be a victim.

However, it was only Sherry. She looked startled at the gun pointed at her, but Carl lowered it and started unloading it. Why was she here? When he saw her from the corner of his eye still standing there, he grudgingly asked, "Why are you even out here?"

"I was with Dwight, but he went off on his own somewhere. He said he wanted to be alone, so I'm trying to find my way back," She cautiously walked towards him.

"Just keep going straight and you'll eventually get to the wall," Carl responded curtly. He had no intention of talking to her or entertaining her. He wanted nothing to do with her or her husband.

Sherry said her thanks, but the sight of green balloons and the letters "JSS" carved onto the tree beside Carl caught her attention. Carl felt her stare and he snapped his head to look at her angrily.

"What?" He asked bluntly.

"The balloons and the letters... what are they for?"

"Why do you care?" Carl got back to his work, wanting her to leave before things really got out of control.

"I care 'cause I owe everything to your people. I want to see Alexandria survive, but right now it looks like it's all going to hell in a handbasket," Sherry paused, taking a deep breath. "They're for the girl, aren't they? Enid?"

"...Yeah..."

Sherry knelt beside the boy, examining the hardened eye that did not fit in his youthful face. "I know how it feels to not be able to talk anyone. I know how it feels to be alone and scared and angry."

"You don't anything about how I feel. I'm not scared, not anymore," He said quietly.

The stars started to shine above them as dusk fell. They both gazed up, taking in the forgotten sight. Sherry had been so caught up in the evening sky that she almost didn't hear Carl speak up.

"I lost everyone I could talk to. There was a girl named Sofia, then a man named Shane, then my mom, then a boy named Patrick, then Beth who was Maggie's sister, and then Enid."

"What about your dad? You can talk to him."

"He's gone too... and even if he wasn't, I don't want to get close to anyone if they all will just die in the end. Yeah, I'm still his son, but I don't want that relationship."

Sherry could have easily offered advice about how he couldn't live like that. It would only hurt more. It would only make everything so much harder.

But she knew that wasn't what he wanted or needed to hear at the moment. Instead, she did the only thing that seemed appropriate at the moment. She embraced him tightly and told him that she would be the one to listen to him. Because that is what he needed; because maybe if someone would have listened before all of this could have been prevented.

Carl froze, processing what was happening. He didn't expect her to do this. He expected those typical adult lectures.

But she was right, he did need to hear this right now. Even if he didn't hug her back or let her see his tears.

* * *

Judith sat on the floor, looking up at Tara. She had a doll in her hand, but she ignored it. She was too interested in Tara.

"I don't know why you keep looking at me. I've got nothing to say," Tara said, staring down at her.

"Why should I say anything? It only leads to more pain. More war. More bloodshed. That's what happened last time," Tara's guilt was forcing her to vent to the toddler, who understood none of it.

Judith stretched out her arms, signaling for Tara to carry her. Tara sighed, gently picking her off the ground. She started to bounce her, causing the girl to laugh. Tara couldn't help but smile at this innocent display.

But something outside the upstairs window caught her eye. Cindy was passing by and she looked extremely depressed.

Tara waved to get her attention, which did. Tara gestured for Cindy to come up into the house, which she complied with. Cindy was curious to hear how Tara was going to excuse herself and she imagined herself snapping at the woman. She wanted to take out all her frustration on the woman who betrayed her.

"Cindy, I'm sorry. I broke the promise to your group. If I knew it would have led to this... I would have..." Tara swallowed hard. "I would have let our group live under The Saviors. I would have let us work for them."

Cindy looked on angrily at Tara, taking in every word she said. "I understand why you did it. But you still had no right to! Our lives mattered too! Not just yours!"

"I know..."

"No apology can make me forgive you! And no trial can make me forgive what he did! But neither will his death or anyone else's..." Cindy's voice dropped as she looked at the tiny child.

"I'm so sorry," Tara placed Judith back in her crib, stroking her hair. Her tears dripped onto the small mattress as she thought about how in another life, in another situation, they could have been great friends. She was sure of it.

Cindy remained stoic as she approached the crib. She gazed down at Judith, thinking of how such an innocent creature could be born into a world like this.

"There were children who also died. I hoped that they didn't suffer long... Unlike me..."

Tara muffled her wail, falling apart when she had just picked herself back up again. No life was worth this, but they all deserved this punishment. They deserved to feel this shame and agony for the rest of their days. This suffering was unlike anything they had ever gone through; it was too unimaginable to bear.

"Do you want to die, Tara?" Cindy looked at her pitifully.

"Y-yes. I want to d-die."

"So do I."

Tara went up to Cindy and took her hand silently. "Make me a promise then. And don't break it like me," She stated in-between sobs. "Promise me you will live."

* * *

"That should be all, Rick," Irene had finished cleaning and bandaging his wounds. Rick smiled wanly at her, thanking her as he got off the cot.

He exited and Irene's plastered grin fell off her face instantly. She started to sterilize her medical instruments, examining them intensely. She gazed at her reflection in the stainless steel, caressing the tools gently.

"These Alexandrians are truly helpless," She reflected. "Just like I used to be..."

Her mind wandered to one patient who recently had a pregnancy scare. She was really vulnerable and would have been in serious trouble if she was indeed pregnant. Not only because pregnancies were life-threatening, but because the child might have been Negan's.

Irene could only imagine the fallout from the patient's actual husband and Alexandria's newest prisoner.

She had to be in the kitchen in a few minutes. She had been the one to volunteer to deliver food to the cell. She couldn't be late.

* * *

Glenn sat in the deep shadows of the cell, perking up when the door suddenly opened.

A woman came into the room and pushed a tray into the jail slot. It hit the floor loudly, startling Glenn.

He slowly picked it up and took a bite out of it. "This is really good," He complimented.

The silhouette put her hands on her hips, keeping silent at this.

"Do you think I could get some medical attention?"

"You'll live," Irene finally spoke. "It's not like you're scared of a little blood, are you?"

Glenn frowned at this, continuing to eat his meal. Irene stared him down for a few minutes before turning on her heel.

"Have a good night," She called out as she left, shutting the door hard.

Glenn kicked the tray away from him. "It's going to be a long night...isn't it.." He turned around and lied down on the cold floor.

As he shut his eyes, cheerful whistling started to ring throughout the room.

"It sure is," Negan's voice whispered sadistically.

* * *

Two pairs of boots stood outside of Alexandria's walls. They had been watching the town for weeks now and it was finally time to go back.

The man and woman hopped into their armored vehicle that was a safe distance from being caught. They drove through the night back to D.C., arriving back at the castle in under an hour.

They marched through the castle into the garden, discussing what they witnessed these past weeks. As expected, their leader was tending to the massive garden that supplied their group.

"Commander Rhee," the pair saluted her. She turned to face them, wearing a similar uniform as the people who stood before her.

"It is like he said. There is a city known as Alexandria. It seems like it is a thriving community, but right now there seems to be turmoil," the man explained.

"...Prepare the vehicles and weapons. I'll take care of the rest," She smiled softly, already thinking ahead.

"Yes, ma'am!" They took their leave as the Commander looked proudly off into the yard, taking in the fresh air of a changing world. 


	23. The First Day of the Rest of Your Life

"If you don't have hope, what's the point of living?"

~Beth Greene

Freedom.

He nearly laughed and threw his arms in the air as he tasted the word. So long, Alexandria! He was never going back! He was free! Free from its citizens, its leader, and most of all his past.

He had no weapon and no plan, but screw it all! He was barreling down the open road towards a new life. One that did not have Rick or any of the others in it.

In a world filled with the dead, Glenn had never felt so alive as he did at this moment. At least not for months.

He wanted to tilt his head back and take in the night sky, but he had to pay attention to the road in front of him. The last thing he wanted to do was crash into a walker or crash in general.

But his mind struggled to stay focused on the dark road ahead. What had happened in the time since his first night in the cell and the present were on rewind as he pushed further into the great unknown.

 _He had refused to talk to any visitor since that night. His heart ached so bitterly that he couldn't bring himself to speak. Grief and disappointment had stolen his voice._

 _All the people who visited him came in and out like a revolving door. They began to blur together as did their words and questions. Only vague recollections remained. He didn't even know if they came the same day. Time had come to a halt... Or better yet it ceased to exist._

 _His first visitors were Abraham and Sasha._

 _He could remember the sorrow in their faces; he could hear the obvious guilt in their questions._

 _Glenn just turned his back towards them, unable to meet their inquisitive gaze. He stated at the wall, feeling tears drip down his cheeks. He had to hold back his sob from the pair._

 _"Glenn," Sasha pleaded, grabbing onto the bars. "Please look at us."_

 _But Glenn stayed silent and in the same position._

 _"Look at us! Dammit!" Abraham boomed. But Glenn didn't budge._

 _He didn't know how long they stood there, but a new voice spoke to him._

 _"I'm going to make sure you get out of here."_

 _Even for Michonne, one of the people he trusted most, he was silent._

 _"Glenn," She stated forcefully. "You don't belong here; this cell wasn't made for people like you. But I need to know you're still a part of us. I need to know you're still the Glenn I know."_

 _Glenn cast a side glance at her, but went back to his original position._

 _It was nighttime when Tara came._

 _"I don't know what to say... But I don't want you to suffer like this. You gave me another chance at life... And you deserve one too."_

 _Glenn nearly replied that time._

 _"We need you back. It isn't the same..." Tara sniffled._

 _One visitor he didn't expect to see was Morgan. He had come with Rick, who was often here to guard him._

 _"He shouldn't be in here, Rick," Morgan looked incredulously at the prisoner. "This makes me want to tear down the cell with my bare hands, knowing I was a part of this."_

 _"It was how it had to be..." Rick replied stoically. Morgan brushed him aside as he stepped in closer towards the bars._

 _"Glenn... Rick told me about what happened. I could hardly believe it... Why? You, of all people?" Morgan thought about the time when he was in Glenn's place, thinking how maybe he could possibly reform Glenn._

 _"He won't answer. He never answers..." Rick lowered his head, placing one hand on the bar._

 _Glenn wasn't sure what month it was. He knew winter was nearly over because the days were getting warmer. He knew that he had been in the cell for a while because his facial hair was growing. He could feel it._

 _He decided he would speak then when he saw Sherry standing alone._

 _"H-How long has it been?" His words came out coarse due to the absence of speech._

 _"Nearly two weeks," Sherry shifted uncomfortably._

 _He never spoke to her again after that._

 _"You were the one who convinced me that there was still good in this world. That there was still hope. Hell, I owe everything to you. My life, my freedom, my marriage," Sherry cried. "I want to help you see the same!"_

 _Dwight never came._

 _Neither did Carl._

 _Gabriel showed up several times; maybe as much as Rick did. Glenn had expected him to get him to repent for what he had done. But he did the opposite. He would ask Glenn questions. They were often questions about his life before the apocalypse. If not, they were questions about Maggie._

 _"What do you think she would think of who you are today?"_

 _"...She would probably hate me."_

 _"Does that bother you?"_

 _"Yeah. But if she were here, I wouldn't be behind this cell."_

 _"I will continue praying for you. We all will. I have changed my ways for the better and I believe you can too. You're hurting right now and that is when we're open to the biggest change."_

 _Glenn didn't answer back._

 _One particular day, he supposed it must have been early in his imprisonment because the pain of betrayal was at its height, an interesting scene took place. It was one of the few times he was on his feet, pacing the cell._

 _Rosita walked in, but didn't notice Rick at the time. She was too focused on Glenn._

 _"Rosita, can I talk to you after you're through here?" Rick approached her. Rosita startled at the man, but agreed._

 _"Hey," She stated firmly, "Glenn, you're stronger than this. When Abe, Eugene, and I met you back in Georgia, we saw a strong and caring man. We didn't see whatever the hell this is."_

 _Glenn for sure wasn't going to respond to that._

 _"Come back to us!" Rosita grew impatient with his silence. "I know Abe believed that the new world would need Rick Grimes in it, but it needs a Glenn Rhee too!" She was on the verge of tears._

 _Rick took Rosita's hand into his own, looking at her curiously. She didn't notice this, but Glenn did._

 _"What did you want to talk about?" She exhaled shakily, turning her head towards the man beside her._

 _"Not here. Outside. It's about... what I did...I haven't had a chance to explain myself and-"_

 _"Rick, it's okay. You've been busy with so much. I knew it wasn't the right time to talk about it," She walked outside of the room with him, sneaking glances of Glenn as she spoke._

 _'That wasn't strange at all,' Glenn mused._

 _One person who hadn't shown up since his first night was Negan, and Glenn couldn't have been more thankful. He couldn't imagine having that devil plaguing his mind too._

 _But Irene had filled his spot. She was constantly there to bring him his meals._

 _Like him, she never spoke._

 _Until the night of his escape._

 _He had been imagining leaving this cell and entering back into the world, no matter how decayed and awful it was._

 _He never thought it would come into fruition. But for the first time in forever, fate decided to grant a pleasant opportunity in his life._

 _It happened the night he was studying his pocket watch. This wasn't anything unusual as he did this nearly every night._

 _But this was the night that the hand started ticking again._

 _At that moment, Irene had arrived with his dinner. If there was one thing Glenn had to say about Rick's governing, he at least knew how to treat his prisoners. Sure, he wasn't eating any five-course meal. But they weren't revolting heaps either._

 _The sandwich on the floor was proof of that._

 _It was then that determination returned his lost voice._

 _He bit into the sandwich, savoring every bite. "You should have been a chef instead of a doctor."_

 _"I'm better with pills than I am with food," She smiled at him. "Plus, I am more useful this way."_

 _"Irene," Glenn placed down his sandwich, nearly halfway done with it. "Why are you volunteering to do this? Don't you hate me?"_

 _Irene moved in closer as he approached the bars that separated them._

 _"I do hate you. But I am trying to learn to forgive."_

 _"I don't deserve your forgiveness. You should hate me," Glenn placed the palm of his hand on the bar, grazing her fingers with his._

 _"I hate myself more for ever believing you were good. For..." She stopped herself from continuing._

 _"For helping me get better?"_

 _"No," Irene shook her head, feeling her heart pound. "For starting to like you."_

 _Glenn paused. "I was beginning to like you too," He smiled at her earnestly._

 _"W-What?" Irene drew back from the cell in shock._

 _"I felt drawn to you when I first saw you. I-I can't explain it," Glenn reached out his fingers towards her through the opening._

 _"You did?" She could feel the air getting thicker and warmer with each passing moment._

 _Glenn nodded. "Yes. I thought I couldn't be with another woman again. And now I won't ever be able. I ruined everything. I ruined your life."_

 _Irene approached the cell again, hesitant to get near him. His eyes met hers in the pale moonlight, seeming to glow with excitement._

 _"Just this once, can I touch you? Can I hold you?" Glenn reached out to hers._

 _"I can't open this door."_

 _"You don't have the keys?"_

 _"I do, but I'm not allowed to."_

 _"Rick wouldn't know. Please, Irene," Glenn whispered._

 _She slowly unlocked the cell, trembling as she did. She shouldn't be doing this; this would only lead to trouble. Why wasn't she saying no to this?_

 _This would only ruin her plan._

 _Her mind was telling her to leave and go back to Netanya, but her heart nor her body were letting her._

 _Glenn gently took her hand before wrapping his arms around her. Before she could process what was happening, his mouth forcefully pressed against hers._

 _No! She didn't want this! This wasn't why she was here!_

 _She struggled to break out of the tight grip that held her in place, feeling the kiss getting more passionate between them. Irene used all of her strength to push Glenn off of her before he went in deeper._

 _She stared wide-eyed at the man, feeling a lump rise in her throat as she gulped in deep breaths._

 _Glenn's eyes still shone in excitement as he walked up to her, kicking the tray towards her._

 _She expected him to try and kiss her again and she tensed up, but he walked past her and yanked the keys out of the lock._

 _"You planned to escape just by kissing me?!" Irene shouted, latching onto his arm and pulling him back. "You think you fooled me?! In a few minutes, you're going to fall to the floor and-"_

 _"And die?" Glenn asked sardonically. "But I'm not the one who swallowed the pill."_

 _Irene felt her heart stop at these words. "Y-yes, you did! Your sandwich! I put it in there!"_

 _"You did." Glenn gazed down at her unsympathetically as her eyes shone with tears. "I knew something was wrong when you came that first night. I knew you weren't giving me food out of charity." He twisted out of her grip, leaving her to sink to her knees as she_ _screamed._

 _"NO! NO!" She tried to vomit up the poisonous pill, gagging herself and coughing unsuccessfully._

 _Glenn could feel someone's eyes on him as he neared the exit; somewhere in the dark Negan was gleefully watching this scene._

 _"I WILL KILL YOU!" Irene suddenly rushed forward with one last attempt at vengeance. On behalf of Netanya and her Oceanside sisters, she would be the one to make sure the scalpel pierced Glenn's heart._

 _Glenn dodged her attack, shoving her hard against the wall. The scalpel fell to the floor with a clang as Irene reached out towards him desperately. She could see that her vision was beginning to get blurry and the room was beginning to spin._

 _"Glenn... please..." She muttered as he shut the door, leaving her in complete darkness._

 _He had to leave Alexandria quickly. It was a surprise no one had heard all the commotion they had made, but he knew that this wouldn't be the case for long._

 _He didn't look back once to see if anyone was following him; only focusing on the task ahead. Get to the gate, get a ride, and get far away from here._

 _He had gotten past the gate easily since no one was manning it. Not since the days of The Saviors had anyone patrolled. They took for granted that sometimes threats come from the inside._

 _The difficult part was getting the cars to start. He tried to start two of them to no avail. He settled for Daryl's motorcycle, which had also somehow come out of the battle unscathed._

 _He paused as he hotwired the bike back to life, thinking that maybe he didn't have to do this. That he could walk back into Alexandria and everything would be okay because he saw a glimpse of hope._

 _And for a moment he saw a life filled with color. Filled with laughter, love, and happiness._

 _But most of all, filled with hope._

 _Because hope would always return again and again._

 _Yet it was anger that guided him to rev up the motorcycle and drive off._

Just as he was gaining a sense of ease from his reflections, radiant headlights off of several huge vehicles turned on. He startled, trying to slow down before he smashed into the objects. His momentum was too fast that the bike skidded and he tumbled off onto the pavement.

He sat up; his skin burnt and sore from the impact. He stuck out his bloody and scraped arms to avoid being blinded from the bright lights. The scene triggering his memory of the last time he was surrounded by shining lights. Last time.

Who the hell was this? Were they...Saviors? Glenn's heart dropped as a terrible sense of dread came over him at the thought.

And it only increased when several people climbed out of the vehicles carrying guns. He still couldn't make out who they were as the lights created silhouettes of their figures. Their weapons were now pointed at him; he was completely at their mercy.

"On your feet!" A woman's voice called out to him. He did so, slowly and painstakingly, but showing no fear. The woman, or the one he assumed to be the one who spoke, came in closer.

"Are you from the Alexandria community?" She questioned, lowering her gun to her side and gesturing for the others to do the same.

He nodded; shock taking his ability to answer the woman. She stood a few feet away from him; her face unreadable but finally visible.

Glenn felt dizzy and thought maybe he had died and he was in the afterlife. Because there was no way this was real.

The woman broke into a run, practically leaping into his arms. He could only stand frozen as she enveloped him into a hug. She gazed into his face in amazement, wiping his tears as she did when they were children.

"Glenn... I've found you..."


	24. 스물 넷 Sequence of Events

_There were_ _five_ _truths Maiya Rhee had realized since the start of the apocalypse. Each had been at a critical moment in her life._

 _These truths were forever burned into her mind, shaping her into the person she was today._

* * *

 _The boy was being chased by at least a dozen monsters. Sweat was clinging to him in the humid, summer air; his shirt drenched as he ran at full speed from the monsters._

 _He wasn't sure where to go, running past the abandoned cars that led towards the airport._

 _His journey at the start of the apocalypse had begun there; it was the only place he knew in this unfamiliar city._

 _His run came to a halt as he saw the road blocked with huge semi. The monsters were approaching, but he still had enough time to escape. He began climbing on top of a car, trying desperately to continue on to the airport._

 _He climbed from car to car, finally reaching the semi. He thought he had conquered his last obstacle until he lost his footing._

 _He landed on his back, knocking the wind out of him. This precious minute of breathlessness had cost him. He could hear their hungry growling right in front of him and he painfully tried to move away. He had his body halfway under the nearest car when the one he had known as Claudia grabbed onto his leg and pulled him back._

 _He let out a scream that was accompanied by several gunshots. The monsters fell to the ground around him instantly._

 _The boy panted with fear, looking around at the scene. He immediately looked towards his savior who looked back at him impatiently._

 _"I wasted good ammo on your ass," She clipped her gun back to her hip. "So quit staring and get up."_

 _"T-Thanks," He finally spoke, casting his teary gaze downwards at "Claudia." He stroked her hair, earning the sigh of the other woman._

 _"There's no use crying about it. Whoever she was, she's gone now."_

 _"I know... But she was special to me. She was one of the few friends I made... during this whole thing," He sobbed._

 _The woman looked around worriedly, knowing that there were sure to be more coming. There always was._

 _"Why? Why did you risk your life to save mine?" The boy remained seated on the road._

 _"I was trained to protect and defend. I saw someone in danger and I helped. Isn't that what separates us from them?" She nudged a body with her boot._

 _"Claudia was a good person," The boy stated absentmindedly, continuing to look at the body._

 _Maiya opened her mouth to retort, but the snarls of approaching monsters forced her to harshly whisper, "We need to go."_

 _The boy looked wide-eyed at her before scurrying up from the road. Maiya shoved another gun into his hand as she reloaded hers._

 _"I-I don't know how to use this! My brother was the one-"_

 _"Then learn. Your life depends on it now," Maiya started to walk ahead of him, not planning on having this kid tag along with her. But he had other ideas, which Maiya firmly put a stop to, telling him that she had done all she could._

 _"I don't have anywhere or anyone else to go to. My whole family's probably dead... so are my friends," He explained sadly._

 _Maiya sighed, knowing she was in the same spot. "Alright. But if you are a burden to my survival, I will not hesitate to ditch you."_

 _The boy nodded with wide eyes, understanding completely this woman was dead serious about leaving his ass behind if he slowed her down._

 _So the pair began their long and uncertain journey outside the ruins of the city once known as Washington D.C. A journey Maiya realized was as strange and foreign as the potential ally beside her and as dangerous and broken as herself._

* * *

 _The pair were bloodied and dirty and lost throughout the Virginian woods. They had just lost their camp in the recent days to a herd of walkers and were shaken up from the experience. Jeffrey had been crying while Maiya hadn't been sleeping, making their appearance even more ragged._

 _"I can't go on," Jeffrey sobbed, falling to the ground. "What's the freaking point?! The world's over! And we have to accept that!"_

 _Maiya leaned against a tree, looking down at him pathetically. "I'm not going to just give up. That's for the weak. We're here now; we're the ones who live."_

 _Jeffrey looked at Maiya deeply, thinking about her words. He thought of his family and how they would want the same for him; wherever they were._

 _Suddenly, gunfire and screams rang out throughout the dead forest. Maiya was about to spring into action, but Jeffrey stopped her, telling her they had no ammo left._

 _"We need to look after ourselves first," Jeffrey explained._

 _"If I would have looked after me first, you wouldn't be here," Maiya scoffed, running towards the source. Jeffrey let out a sigh of annoyance, following her lead grudgingly._

 _In the middle of a clearing were a young man and woman, surrounded by several 'monsters,' as Maiya had grown to call them._

 _The man was shouting as he fired several bullets into the monsters while the woman beat and impaled the beings with her spear. It seemed as if they had everything under control, but the man had run out of bullets. The woman was also beginning to show signs of exhaustion._

 _This was enough to cause Maiya to act. She took out her only weapons; two sickles. She rushed into the battle with Jeffrey, who had a machete._

 _One last rush of adrenaline flowed through the both of them as they slashed, and slashed, and slashed. Their anger, their sorrow, their pain was sprayed across their already darkened clothes and skin._

 _Red was all they could see._

 _They collapsed once their spree was finished. Maiya knew she should still be on her feet in front of strangers, but her fatigue prevented her. Still, she made it known that if they tried anything she had sickles clenched in her hands._

 _"Thank you," the man stated warmly. "We were nearly goners until you two showed up."_

 _"It's no problem," Maiya panted, looking up at the man. He startled at how bloody her face was._

 _"What were you even doing out here?" Jeffrey asked._

 _"We were on our way back from scavenging," the woman answered in a distinct British accent. "Then our car broke down and we had to walk back. We lost all our supplies though..." She looked at the scattered remains of their earnings dejectedly._

 _"Hey! Are you two part of a group?" The man exclaimed._

 _"No... not anymore," Maiya responded hesitantly._

 _"Oh, well I don't know if you would like to join ours then. We're always looking for new members who will contribute," the man smiled._

 _"Dante..." The woman started to say, but 'Dante' ignored her._

 _"Lillith, we need people like them. People who can pull their weight. That's who he's looking for," Dante reassured. "He's always taken a shine to those types of people," he chuckled._

 _Maiya looked at Jeffrey in curiosity. Jeffrey shrugged and said they should at least check it out._

 _"How many people are there in your group?" Maiya decided she should get some information on these people before she went with them._

 _"About thirty. We're a small group," Dante replied cheerfully. "But we need all the help we can get at the moment. And it would be the least we could do after what you did for us. We can at least give you some food and clean you up."_

 _"Thanks..." Jeffery's tone didn't sound so grateful._

 _"Then we better start going back." Lillith started to lead the way impatiently. "Our leader isn't the most patient of men."_

 _Dante laughed at this. "He's pretty cool. I've known him since high school- he was my coach. You two will fit right in! He loves the youth!"_

 _Maiya and Jeffrey could only stare in awe at the large factory that stood before them._

 _"Welcome! To the Sanctuary!" Dante gestured around._

 _"It's a cheesy name, isn't it?" Lillith smirked, placing her hands on Maiya and Jeffrey's shoulders._

 _"Well, don't tell Negan that. The name is part of his vision," Dante remarked sarcastically._

 _All around, people were working on the chain-link fence, gardens, and chicken coops. This was The Sanctuary in its early days._

 _"C'mon, it's time you met the man himself," Dante motioned for them to follow. "We really owe our lives to him."_

 _"He has an... interesting personality just to warn you," Lillith chuckled, taking out a cigarette and lighting it._

 _Maiya felt a wave of anxiety come over her as she walked into the factory. A voice in her head was telling her to run. To get far away from here. Bad things were going to come._

 _Nonetheless, she ignored this warning and found herself looking up at a grinning man on top of the stairs._

 _"I see ya' both have returned empty-handed. But with something more interesting in tow," The man slowly walked down the stairs, never taking his eyes off Maiya. She turned her head away, feeling disturbed by this._

 _"Yes, Negan. Our car stopped working, so we had to walk back. Then we were attacked by some walkers when these two saved us. We lost everything in the fight though. But next time, we will repay our lost supplies. I promise," Dante explained, albeit nervously._

 _"Dante! Don't worry about it! You're one of the hardest workers here; always have been!" Negan slapped Dante on the back playfully. Dante laughed at this, relieved he wasn't in trouble._

 _"Excuse my French, but you two look like shit! What the hell happened to you?" Negan questioned._

 _"We just lost our camp," Jeffrey gritted his teeth in remembrance._

 _"Mmm... tragic. Well, how would you like to live here?" Negan smiled. "You get food, shelter, protection with the small cost of contributing to The Sanctuary. It's a once in a lifetime offer!"_

 _Maiya and Jeffrey exchanged glances, wondering if they should take up this deal. Negan must have caught onto their hesitation as he said, "I get it. You're unsure. But I treat all my Saviors with the upmost respect. Without them, there would be no Sanctuary. Hell, even I wouldn't be here. Tell them, Dante."_

 _"It's true. I found Negan again after all this happened. He had been one of my favorite teachers in high school so that's how I knew he would be the best leader. No one else could have led us to what we are today. He really cares about each one of us. He can be crazy sometimes, but that's what makes him connect with us."_

 _"I consider Dante to be one of my most loyal men," Negan continued. "Great kid. So is Lillith even if she is moody."_

 _Lillith rolled her eyes in mock annoyance at this. "It's not going to get much better than this. The Sanctuary is home."_

 _"So... what do ya' say?" Negan grinned eagerly, leaning back as he did so. "We're gonna need everyone on board if we're gonna rebuild civilization. I don't know about you two, but I miss the Internet and cable TV."_

 _She wasn't sure what Jeffrey was thinking at the moment, but she could only guess that agreeing to Negan's ideology of rebuilding the world must have been out of desperation...and hope. A hope that crossed her face as a smile as she accepted this offer._

 _At the time, she realized that even though this was a gamble The Sanctuary could be her new home. Negan's charisma had convinced her this could actually work. She realized that this was the first time she believed in the hope of rebuilding a new life; a new world._

* * *

 _Anger was what coursed through Maiya's veins as she bowed before Negan. The original concern she held had been lost, but apparently remained in the others as she looked around._

 _Things had drastically changed within The Sanctuary, and not for the better. The relations between Negan and "The Saviors" had been tense in the past weeks. Their leader had become more demanding, more brutal, and more unpredictable._

 _He also had started carrying around a new weapon; a baseball bat wrapped in barbed wire._

 _As he swaggered by, he twirled the bat whistling in delight. People reflexively glanced up to him; unsure if he would swing it at someone. The paranoia was high in the compound as was the misery._

 _But not everyone was miserable. One particular man named Simon, who had grown close to Negan, was enjoying his newfound position of power. Maiya blamed their "friendship" as the cause of Negan's deterioration._

 _"Something's going to go wrong. Something really bad is going to happen if we don't do something," Maiya told Dante later on, away from earshot._

 _"What can we do? Negan's just worried about getting enough supplies and guaranteeing our survival. Things have become scarce and he recognizes that. It'll pass and you'll see him back to the man he used to be," Dante sighed tiredly._

 _"Why do you keep defending him? Can't you see he's working us to death? He keeps demanding more and more supplies for_ _his_ _survival!" She whispered angrily. "It's never enough for him."_

 _"He's doing what he can. It's all for us."_

 _"...I'm going to talk to him then. People are scared and he needs to know how we all feel. He needs to know that we don't think he's fit to be our leader."_

 _"What?! No! Don't do that!" Dante pleaded, but Maiya had already made up her mind._

 _"There was a time when things were good around here! When we weren't living under the threat of some barbed bat! Negan's going to run this place into the ground. And screw that Simon guy! He's the only one benefitting from all of this!" Maiya pushed past Dante, heading towards Negan's domain._

 _She was determined to talk to him about this. If he truly was a good leader, he would listen and not throw her out. She practically marched to his door and knocked furiously._

 _The door suddenly swung open, revealing a giggling Lillith in a lacy, black dress. Her smile dropped when she met an agape Maiya._

 _Lillith brushed past the flustered woman, leaving Maiya to process what she just witnessed. Her suspicions were only confirmed when she walked into the bedroom and saw Negan zipping up his jacket._

 _"He-ey! Maiya! You caught me at a bad time. But I could be up for another round if you're willi-" Negan started to say before Maiya interrupted indignantly._

 _"What the hell?! No! What is wrong with you?!"_

 _"Whoa, she came onto me first. And how could I say no? Ya' see, we worked out a deal where she is basically 'my wife' in exchange for never having to work or earn points again. You could get in on this too. You'd be treated like a queen."_

 _Maiya felt as if she had just been slapped in the face. Actually, that would have been a better insult than what he just suggested._

 _"All of this just proves what I came here for! You have crossed the line, Negan!"_

 _"What are ya' trying to say?"_

 _"That you shouldn't be our leader anymore."_

 _Negan's face contorted and he gave a dark, booming laugh. A laugh that sent chills down Maiya's spine. He moved past her, going to the side of the bed and revealing the barbed-wire bat._

 _Maiya froze, staring at him as he walked towards her._

 _"And what exactly are you going to do about that?" He practiced swinging to the side of her. She flinched, losing her voice completely._

 _"I said! What are you going to do about it!" He roared. "That's what I thought. While I appreciate your candor here and the guts it took to say this, don't forget who's really in charge here." He pointed the bat mere inches from her face._

 _"I must admit, I am a little worried about you. I need to know where you stand with me," Negan continued, taking the bat away from her face. He went behind her and leaned in close to her, whispering, "Who are you?"_

 _The next words Maiya uttered made her realize that in order to survive she had to conform. She was always someone who had challenged rules, but right now she recognized her powerlessness. The time would come when she would challenge Negan's rules, but today was not that day. So with a heavy heart, she answered,_

 _"...Negan."_

* * *

 _That day did finally come._

 _After what seemed like years, when in reality were months, a civil war broke out in The Sanctuary._

 _Many of the youth had grown jaded with Negan's rules, senseless violence, and brutal demands. The final straw had been when Negan had thrown a young man into the furnace after he stole some supplies._

 _They had finally gathered their courage to challenge Negan and his beloved "Lucille."_

 _Maiya recalled how she thought that luck was going to be on their side. They were going to win this. They were going to win their freedom._

 _Beside her on the battlefield was Jeffrey, who had become quite a pro at firearms. As they took out Saviors left and right, Maiya was beginning to grow confident in their victory._

 _"We need to find Negan! He's the priority!" Maiya instructed._

 _"Where is he then?!" Jeffrey called back._

 _"If he's as smart as he thinks he is, hiding!"_

 _Suddenly Jeffrey exclaimed, "Maiya! I see him!"_

 _"Where?!"_

 _"He went behind The Sanctuary! I'm going to go for it!"_

 _"Jeffrey, wait! NO!" But the boy had already vanished behind the large factory._

 _Maiya immediately stopped shooting and took off after the impulsive young man. That was the problem; Negan was incredibly intelligent. He wouldn't just be here in the open, not without an agenda._

 _As she turned the corner, she cried out at the sight in front of her. Jeffrey stood frightened with his hands raised and his gun on the floor. Behind him was Negan grinning sadistically, pressing Lucille on his shoulder. Jeffrey winced at the pressure._

 _Maiya immediately raised her gun and aimed it at Negan; her face twisted in rage._

 _"No, no, no, sweetheart," Negan wagged his finger at her. "Get on your knees where you belong."_

 _She felt the end of a gun jabbed against her back and she released her weapon. As she kneeled down, she turned her head to see just who was behind her._

 _Simon. Of course. With the same idiotic smirk and arrogance that Negan had._

 _Around them, more Saviors were gathering in a circle with guns trained at Maiya and Jeffrey; the latter who was forced to his knees by Negan._

 _Maiya could feel her eyes become watery as she looked at Jeffrey. She was trying to be strong for him, but she knew what was coming. He looked back at her equally sad, trying to give her a reassuring smile._

 _"I guess you thought this was all a front! That I wasn't the guy with a bat!" Negan circled the pair. "But maybe this is all on me! Maybe I didn't make things clear enough!" He stopped right in front of Maiya. "You all are going to witness history in the making! You're going to witness just what Lucille is capable of!"_

 _Negan dropped to the ground, eye-level with Maiya. "As punishment, I'm going to kill Jeffrey," His tone was low and threatening, but his expression showed enjoyment in watching the woman struggling to keep her composure. "Your rebellion has failed. Look around. You've lost."_

 _His words were a stab to her heart as she confirmed he was right. The tide had turned and they were on the losing end. The Saviors had gotten the upper hand._

 _But the rebel in her wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of seeing her defeated. So she leaned in closer to Negan, their faces inches apart, and angrily whispered,_

 _"It might take years; it might take the rest of my life. But I don't care how long it takes, I will kill you. Each and every one of your men. You'll think you've escaped; that I've given up. You'll wake up each day thinking you're safe from me. But then the day will come when you won't be."_

 _Negan's confidence vanished for a brief moment; he was visibly shaken by what she had just said. His mouth twitched, but then his usual smile appeared on his face once again._

 _"Damn. That was hot as hell," Negan chuckled, angering Maiya even further. "I'm a man of my word and I said I was going to do it." Negan rose to his feet and raised Lucille with both hands. Jeffrey tensed up and Maiya felt herself on the edge of a breakdown._

 _This was it._

 _They were both going to die here._

 _Maiya gave one last look to Jeffrey, but the latter had his eyes closed tightly._

 _But then the world around them exploded._

 _Several bombs went off around The Sanctuary, knocking everyone to the ground. Maiya didn't waste this distraction, snatching her gun up. Simon tried to take the gun from her, but she knocked him out with the end of it. She shot every Savior on sight while Jeffrey wrestled with Negan for Lucille._

 _Negan had gotten hold of Lucille and was about to bring it down on Jeffrey's skull when a sudden chain wrapped around his arm, preventing him from doing so._

 _Dante emerged, holding the other end of the chain firmly. Negan's arm struggled to break free of the chain, but the only thing that happened was Lucille falling beside Jeffrey._

 _Maiya pointed her gun at Negan; her finger hovering over the trigger._

 _"It's over, Negan!" Maiya proclaimed._

 _"Wrong again!" Negan grinned._

 _"Maiya, we have to go! We're losing badly!" Dante pulled the chain back and helped Jeffrey up._

 _"But- we can't! We have to fight!" Maiya didn't take her gun off Negan._

 _"We'll die!" Dante reasoned desperately. "Even with the bombs we set... I'm sorry. Lillith is waiting in the woods with some others."_

 _Maiya let out a howl of anguish before crying out, "I swear, we will return! You're a dead man walking!"_

 _As the remaining youth ran deep into the forest, Maiya ordered the people to keep running until their feet bled and not to stop for anything._

 _She took one last look at The Sanctuary and saw The Saviors gathered around Negan. There weren't that many left and she had no idea how they would rebuild after this. How Negan would get the supplies he wanted, but that was beyond her worry right now._

 _It was as she began running again that she realized she should have run when she first set sight on The Sanctuary; on Negan. She should have listened to that inner voice._

* * *

 _The final realization came when her people had found their current home- the Smithsonian Castle as it was formerly known._

 _It was the ideal spot for them. It was large, could be secured, and far from Negan._

 _It was a miracle they had been able to clear it, but they did with the little weapons and numbers they had._

 _Maybe it was that they were in their prime age. Or maybe all the labor they did at The Sanctuary had finally paid off._

 _Everyone sat around inside exhausted. She told them to rest and tomorrow they could start securing the place._

 _They all looked to her in guidance, which she felt was a mistake after all she had cost them._

 _But as the oldest, she knew would automatically be the leader._

 _Maiya explored the place, wanting to be alone with her thoughts. She collapsed next to a pile of scattered and damaged books._

 _Her attention was brought to a particular cover that showed several sharp instruments and laboratory flasks._

 _The title read 'Frankenstein.'_

 _She wasn't sure why she started to read this; reading was practically obsolete in this world. But maybe it was because of the cover and the theme of science in the novel._

 _But upon reading it, an idea came into her mind._

 _Science had been the driving force of humanity. That had never changed nor would it._

 _The people around her were of high intelligence; almost genius level when they were in college. But they were all working towards a future with no guarantee of a stable life; of a stable country._

 _Their efforts were going to probably be unrecognized._

 _A smile crossed her face as she realized that they could be the new founding fathers. They could go down in history as the ones who rid the world of this plague. Suddenly all vengeance sworn on Negan had disappeared and a new goal developed in her brain. One of more importance and necessity._

 _The ones who historians would study and analyze._

 _The ones future children would learn about in schools._

 _The ones who would be seen as heroes._

 _The ones who found a cure._


	25. 스물 다섯 Dead Man Walking

"Nowadays people are just as dangerous as the dead."

~Father Gabriel

He felt the presence of a body beside him before he saw it.

Rick remained motionless in the bed, blinking several times up at the ceiling. He didn't need to look over at the window to know it was morning.

"Morning, sunshine," a feminine voice spoke, startling him from his groggy state. He could already imagine the smirk on her face; he didn't need to turn over to see it.

But he still turned to his side to confirm his original thoughts. And he was glad he did because her smile is more beautiful than he could ever imagine.

"Mornin'," Rick replied, grinning back at her.

"I didn't think you would stay." Rosita traced her fingers along Rick's rough palm.

"Why's that?" Rick's smile faded at this, changing instantly into an expression of worry.

Rosita only shrugged, lifting her head to look at the blinded window. Rick could not read her, which furthered his concern that he did something wrong.

"Hey, what is it? You can tell me," He reassured, reaching out to her. But something stopped him from doing so.

A scream so bloodcurdling that it sent chills down both their spines.

Rosita and Rick didn't waste a moment as they leaped off the bed, dressing quickly and grabbing their weapons in the process.

The previous night's events long forgotten in their minds.

* * *

Netanya was practically bursting with excitement as she approached the house where Glenn was held.

Her anticipation was so great that she didn't sense something was wrong.

That perhaps her plan had gone awry.

"Glenn?" She called out, pressing her ear against the door. When there was no answer, she couldn't prolong the suspense any longer. She pushed open the door, prepared to see Glenn's dead body lying on the cell floor.

What she wasn't prepared for was the slumped corpse of Irene to suddenly lunge off the ground at her.

Netanya let out a shriek of surprise and horror, blocking the walker from biting her with her strength.

With no weapon in hand, Netanya could only shove the walker backwards and run out of the room.

The walker let out a terrifying growl, snapping its mouth as it gave chase to the woman. It was slow and clumsy, not much of threat so Netanya put some distance between her and it.

There were no other people in sight; nobody she could call out to for help.

Suddenly, a gunshot rang out and the walker fell to the pavement at once. Blood poured out of the bullet hole and pooled around the body, making its way to Netanya's shoes.

Netanya took in deep breaths as she glanced up at her shaking granddaughter, who stood with a gun raised. She could see the traumatized look on Cindy's face, knowing this had been her first kill. Cindy had always hesitated to kill something that had once been human.

"W-What happened?" Cindy sniffled, looking at the body of her former friend.

"...Glenn." Netanya practically snarled as she pronounced the name.

Hurried footsteps approached the pair from the left. Carl, who had raced out of his house as soon as he heard the commotion, halted in his place at the sight in front of him. He recognized the walker to be Irene and immediately suspected this had to be connected to Glenn somehow.

He wasn't sure why he thought this. There was no external injury to the body to show how she originally died.

But call it intuition or a sixth sense... _he knew._

"Where did she come from?" He demanded.

"The cell," Netanya replied, already starting to turn back towards its direction.

More quickened footsteps were heard, but this time from all around. Shock, anger, confusion, and alarm were evident on the Alexandrians' faces as they came upon the gruesome scene.

"How-She-How?" Rick was at a loss for words, unable to process that he had just seen this woman alive the day before.

"I know who did this," Netanya snapped; her eyes burning with vengeful fire.

"...No..." Rick's stomach dropped at the implication. Netanya was wrong... She had to be. Dammit! She couldn't be right about Glenn _again!_

He needed to confirm this, breaking into a sudden run. Everyone else followed behind him anxious to see what had killed this woman.

Rick nearly smashed into the door as he had failed to slow down. He panted in fear as he gazed at the empty and ajar cell.

People poured into the room from behind, gasping as they realized what their situation now meant.

"Everyone! Listen up! I want you all to search every inch of this place! Leave no corner untouched!" Rick clenched his fist in frustration. "We need to find Glenn as soon as possible."

He angrily pushed past the crowd, ignoring their questions and pleas. He made his way to the Alexandrian gate, wanting to see how much shit he was in.

He noticed immediately what had been taken. It was the only one of its kind.

"Dad!" Carl shouted, running up to him. "What's going on?"

Rick could only lower his head, sinking to his knees. His body started to shake violently as hysterical laughter erupted from him.

Carl took a few steps back in fear. He didn't understand what was so funny about Glenn escaping.

"Don't you see, Carl?! We've been tricked! Hoodwinked! Duped! Outsmarted! From the very beginning!" Rick kept laughing manically.

"...Dad..."

"We gave him far less credit than he deserved!" Rick's sides were beginning to hurt from his laughter. He wiped away tears from his eyes, but kept laughing nonetheless.

"He was in control this whole time. He was the damn puppet master and we were too stupid to realize it."

* * *

The jeep hit a bump, jolting Glenn awake from his much-needed slumber.

"Glad to see you're still alive." Maiya grinned, peering at him from the side. "Thought you might have turned on us with that snoring."

Glenn stared back at her incredulously; his jaw slack and tears welling up his eyes. "Am-Am I finally dead? Is this what this is?"

"Glenn, you're alive. I'm alive. I don't know how... but we are." Maiya's smug expression turned into a softer one of compassion.

"How... did I even get in here? I-I don't remember..." Glenn wiped his fallen tears from his face, wanting to get a clearer look of his sister.

"You passed out and I had to practically carry you over here." She suddenly groaned. "What happened to my small brother? You've gained some weight from the last time I've seen you. Or should I say muscle?" She chuckled, tears spilling from her eyes.

Unsure what to say next, Glenn quickly embraced her. He wanted to believe that this was not some sort of hallucination; some sort of dream. He wanted to know that she was indeed real.

Maiya's breath hitched in her throat, making a sort of gasping noise. She too thought that Glenn was perhaps an illusion and that he would soon fade away. But then he touched her and she knew he was here. He was alive.

"Forgive me, Glenn. I don't deserve to cry. I have no right to. When all this happened, I hardly thought about you all. Maybe once or twice... but I thought you were all dead. I thought we would never see each other again." Maiya covered her face with her hand, ashamed of her tears.

"No, you have every right to cry. Don't ever think that you don't," Glenn choked out. "I was the same way. I thought the world was too cruel to allow this. I didn't want to hope one day...This world, for once, has shown me kindness."

They held each other, crying in silence for the remaining time on the road. The silence wasn't broken until Jeffrey, who had been driving, said,

"Commander Rhee, we have arrived."

Glenn let out a small laugh at this. "Really? Commander?"

Maiya let go of him, laughing as well. "I'm not so arrogant to have come up with that myself. They did."

Once the vehicle entered the gate and parked, Maiya hopped out, going around to her brother's side to help him out. He leaned on her, wrapping his arm around her to be held upright. But he felt his knees buckle, threatening to topple over once again at the sight before him.

A heavily-secured, magnificent, relic of a time gone bye greeted him.

A part of him wanted to weep as his eyes took in the grand castle. Another part of him felt his spirit soar. And a sliver felt shame because his friends couldn't witness this beautiful sight.

"How did you even secure this place?" Glenn shook his head in bewilderment.

"It took everything we had- Immediately when we found it, we started building a wall. Thankfully, there were a lot of materials here due to the sculpture gardens," Maiya explained, enjoying Glenn's astonishment. "Our architect here made sure of that," She gestured towards Jeffrey, who took great pride in this statement. "Jeffrey- every one of our members is the reason I've been able to survive.

"I thought Alexandria was paradise when we first entered... But this... This is.." Glenn couldn't even find the words to continue as they walked towards the front steps.

"If you're impressed by this, wait until you see the inside!" Maiya was so caught up in her bliss she didn't notice Jeffrey had cast a sideways glance towards her.

"Maiya, wait. I would like to explore the inside... But I want to talk to you more first. It's been... months, years, I don't know anymore since I've last seen you. I have so much to tell you. I have so much to ask." Glenn smiled earnestly. "And I want to hear what you have to say too."

Maiya paused, thinking this over as every resident approached her curiously. They only had a vague grasp of what was happening; that their leader's brother had been found. But they still were suspicious of who he really was, what connection he had to Alexandria, and his journey to reunite with his sister.

"Commander, I agree. There will be plenty of time to show him around," Jeffrey said warily, glancing at Glenn skeptically. "We still need to know about Alexandria..."

"Like you said, Jeffrey, we will have plenty of time. First, I want to show my brother around The Castle," Maiya retorted. "Glenn, we can discuss everything as we walk around." Glenn nodded tiredly, knowing his sister hadn't changed her stubbornness and it would be pointless to try and fight her.

She gave an order to her top subordinates to prepare a feast for dinner. They would dine like royalty tonight, seeing that the occasion called for it. Immediately, Dante and Jeffrey scattered to start their preparations.

"I am not sure where to begin," Maiya confessed sheepishly as she led Glenn inside.

"With the tour or with the conversation?" Glenn stared wide-eyed at the ceiling above. Yeah, he had to be dead and his sister was really an angel guiding him to heaven. This castle was too breathtaking to be real.

"Both actually," She giggled.

* * *

"So... she and I got married in the prison.." Glenn cast his eyes downwards, feeling as if would break down any second. Maiya and he were currently in the large garden, sitting on one of the last remaining sculptures; The Moon Garden Gates.

"Can you believe that, Maiya? The brother who was always too shy to talk to a girl married a beautiful woman. It just took the freaking apocalypse for it to happen."

She clung onto every sentence he spoke, taking in every word and letting it fill her with joy. "What happened next?"

"...Things were good for a while... But what came after was only pain and war and death. Her father was killed in a battle for the prison... The prison was destroyed... Everyone got separated... She lost her sister in another senseless battle... We had just found each other... We thought we would find her too. But we arrived too late. We were so close! Dammit! She had to see her sister's lifeless body be carried out..." Glenn raised his voice despairingly. "I thought finally we could be happy! Maggie deserved to be happy..."

"...You don't have to continue, Glenn," Maiya comforted him. "I know this must be-"

"No. There's still more you have to know. There's still more..." He took in a deep breath before continuing. "That was all in Georgia. We decided to honor Beth's wish to try and find her friend, Noah's family in Virginia. We were supposed to come here originally because of some ridiculous lie. Eugene- he claimed to be a scientist... he told us he knew that there was a cure..."

Glenn didn't notice that Maiya's eyes briefly blackened at this, but quickly returned to normal.

"So that's how we ended up here... We came across Aaron, who was a scout for Alexandria. He took us back there... And war... death... sorrow.. pain... it all followed us here. Noah. Eugene. They're all dead." A distant look crossed Glenn's face.

"Maggie and I wanted to start a family... She became pregnant. But then our leader did something stupid. He killed the wrong people...Well, I guess the right people. We were captured... Forced on our knees... Told one of us would die... Would be beaten with a bat..." Glenn's speech was slowly becoming less coherent.

"Maggie was sick! She wasn't supposed to be there! I tried to get to her! I saw everything... the blood... the beating... Daryl... She was sick... She must have gone into shock or something... He killed her too. She was pregnant... He claimed it was for mercy? He did me a favor?" Glenn wore a haunted expression while Maiya looked absolutely horrified.

"This world... it just takes and takes and takes. I was supposed to be a husband... A dad... A friend... I was supposed to be with her... They were all supposed to... To live."

"Glenn. That's enough..." Maiya couldn't bear to see her brother relive this tragedy. This story...His suffering..it made her want to put a gun to her head and pull the trigger.

She may have not been a genius like her colleagues, but she knew who he was talking about. She had to face the same horror... the same capture... position... threat.

But she had been much luckier.

Oh, how she wanted to vomit out her guilt and terror. She should have stayed behind at The Sanctuary! She shouldn't have fled... She could have finished this.

She could have prevented this.

"Is... Is this man still alive?" Maiya asked; a surge of vengeance coursing through her veins. She would end him this time. This time... he wouldn't stand a chance against them. She wouldn't give him that chance.

"No... He's dead too. But this time... I was the one who took his life." A sadistic glint flashed in Glenn's eyes. "I took it with a metal bat wrapped in wire... and a wooden one with nails in it."

"Commander! Sorry to interrupt, but dinner is ready," Dante entered the garden, greeting them both.

"We will be there shortly. Thank you, Dante," Maiya forced a smile; she suddenly didn't feel so hungry anymore. What replaced that feeling was dread.

"Glenn... Are you ready?" Maiya clenched her hands together tightly, thinking how soon she would have to reveal all of her secrets. Secrets that might make her lose her brother again.

"Yeah... I didn't realize how hungry I was," Glenn responded numbly.

"It is a big dinner. Only the best for our leader and her long-lost brother," Dante grinned.

As Maiya and Dante started to talk, Glenn fell back from their hurried pace. What they said sounded grave, but it was lost upon Glenn.

Something else caught his attention as they walked back; a weathered and barely readable sign.

With a solemn and darkened expression, he read the large font:

Enid A. Haupt Garden.

* * *

"The cars are all ready. Is everyone else ready?" Rick packed the last bag into the truck.

"Yeah, Rick," Rosita answered wearily. "Everyone's ready to go."

"Listen up. I want you all to go in pairs," Rick ordered to Rosita, Abraham, Michonne, Tara, Sherry, Dwight, and Carl. " Carl, you're obviously coming with me. We will head to The Kingdom to see if Glenn may have stopped by there. I need a pair to go towards The Sanctuary, Hilltop, and D.C. We need to check every major place to see if anyone has seen him or if he is there."

It was decided amongst the group that Michonne and Tara would head towards D.C. Sherry and Dwight would go to The Sanctuary, and Abraham and Rosita would go to Hilltop.

"I don't know, Rick. Shouldn't we just... give up on him?" Abraham suggested, believing there was no point in chasing after this man.

"No! We have to find him! Despite everything, he's still our family... I screwed up. I screwed him over... I realized that too late. I screwed all of you over so bad...My failures... My mistakes... My decisions... they all got people killed. So this will be my last decision as leader. Please, just do this for him... For Maggie... She deserved a better leader... She would be a better leader."

Everyone exchanged sorrowful glances with one another, but kept quiet at Rick's words. The fight in them was slowly dying out like the remaining embers of a once passionate fire. Each step they took seemed to only lead to more disaster and heartache. To more death.

They were just exhausted from it all. They wanted nothing more than for all of this to end. The hope of living was turning into a hope for dying as each day passed.

"Okay... For her.." Tara finally muttered.

No one even had it in them to fight her on that.

* * *

Maiya had barely touched her food, which Jeffrey had noticed.

"Commander, are you alright? Is the food bad?"

"No, Jeffrey. I'm just not hungry from all the... excitement," She replied convincingly. He nodded and returned to eating, but he still watched her from the corner of his eye.

"Glenn, how is the food?" Maiya questioned, hiding her unease with a smile.

"It's great! Just like everything in this place," He smiled back. His normal mood seemed to return as he looked around at everyone seated at the long table, thanking them for such a delicious meal.

"I'm glad you like it. I guess Alexandria's food isn't too good?" Jeffrey joked. This earned him glares from both Maiya and Dante.

"Um, how did you know I was from Alexandria?" The memory of Jeffrey mentioning this earlier made Glenn look at Maiya, knowing she was the only one he told that.

"Actually, this is the perfect opportunity to tell you how we found you. I never knew you were in Alexandria," Maiya answered before Jeffrey could open his mouth again. "We...were told about Alexandria from one of its former members. So I sent scouts to see what type of community Alexandria was. When I found out you were all thriving, but in trouble, we decided to head over."

Glenn looked puzzled by this. "Former members? Who was that?"

"We never got his name... he died from a monster bite sadly," Maiya took a sip of her glass.

"I don't understand... Trouble? Why would you head over for that?"

The residents all looked at each other tensely. Maiya, not wasting a moment, responded to her brother's questions.

"We are a strong community. Incredibly strong. But we also need help..." She paused. "We want to unite each community to help in rebuilding civilization if possible. Alexandria seemed to be strong as well."

Glenn swallowed, hearing his heart beat rapidly at the mention of that philosophy. That cursed philosophy that killed and destroyed so many lives, including his.

He couldn't seem to escape it either.

"But not only that..." Jeffrey murmured, looking down at his lap.

"He told us... that my brother was there. Richie... but these days I guess everyone calls him Rick."


	26. 스물 여섯 Plague

"Anyone who is not one of us is a threat."

~Rick Grimes

The road to the Hilltop was a silent and awkward one. Abraham was seemingly too focused on the wheel while Rosita stared out of the passenger window solemnly.

"You've been avoiding me. You were never the one to give me the silent treatment- Why are you holdin' your tongue now?" Abraham finally asked, not breaking his gaze from the road.

"I thought you would be upset or something about me and Rick. And I didn't want any damn lecture," Rosita sneered.

"Me? Giving you a lecture? Rosita Espinosa, you are a grown-ass woman. Why the hell would I give you a lecture? Did I give one to you when you were with Spencer?" Abraham was slightly offended by this ridiculous accusation.

"Don't mention him!" The woman grimaced at the painful memory of her former boyfriend. This instantly shut the ginger up. "But no, you didn't. This is different though."

"Enough with the drama, Rosita! Tell me what the hell you're talkin' about." Abraham swerved to the side of the road roughly, putting the vehicle in park.

"Because a part of me still hurts after what you did! A part of me wanted to yell _you weren't the last man on earth_ when you walked in on us!" Rosita snapped; tears pouring from her reddened eyes. "A part of me wanted you to feel what I felt."

Abraham looked at her with a softened expression. He had no idea she had been hurting all this time. He had taken for granted that beneath her tough exterior lied a vulnerable and devastated woman.

"I know it's childish and stupid compared to everything that's happen-"

"I'm sorry," Abraham interrupted. "I was a douchebag- _I am a douchebag._ I never meant to hurt you like that."

"I would have understood, you know. Leaving me for Sasha. Sasha's great." Rosita rubbed her eyes with a gloved hand.

"Yeah, she is.." Abraham sighed. "And so are you. You both don't deserve an idiot like me." Abraham shifted the gear into drive.

He stayed quiet for a moment as he drove off before asking, "Do you... mm... have feelings for Rick?"

"At first, I wasn't sure. I thought that maybe he was just a rebound," Rosita exhaled deeply. "And I felt guilty. But now, whenever I'm around him... I feel calm. For once, I don't think of you or Spencer or anyone else. I just see him." Rosita smiled to herself.

"I know he may not always make the smartest decisions sometimes. His leadership skills can be... faulty. But he still persists and takes action. He never gives up on his people. Even right now with this Glenn situation, he still sees him as his friend," Rosita continued. "How many men are like that? How many men have remained like that?"

"If you were to get with someone else, I would hope it'd be a man like Rick Grimes," Abraham responded gently. "But if he ever breaks your heart, you come and tell me. I'll make sure he-"

"Alright, I get it!" Rosita laughed loudly, interrupting before he could finish his sentence.

Just as the pair was growing comfortable with each other, Abraham's cheerful mood shifted as something just occurred to him. This dramatic shift did not go unnoticed by Rosita as she asked:

"Hey, what's up?"

"I feel like I failed Rick...well, not just him, but all of y'all."

"What are you talking about?" Rosita glanced at him incredulously.

"That night... that night you were all captured... I wasn't there. I should have been there! Things might have gone differently."

"Abe, you were protecting Alexandria. You couldn't have known-" Rosita stopped, unable to utter the remainder of what happened that night.

"...That wasn't the only reason I stayed behind," His voice dropped as his face darkened. "I'm a coward."

"Abraham..." Rosita's eyes widened at this statement.

"Sasha had a dream. She told me I would die if I went with you to Hilltop. I tried telling her Maggie needed me. But she looked so scared. Hell, she even scared me. I finally let her convince me. And it's been killing me ever since," Abraham confessed; his grip tight on the steering wheel.

"You're not a coward," Rosita muttered. "How could you even say that?"

"No? Then tell me what I am then if I feel _relieved_ that I didn't get to see that!" Abraham exclaimed furiously.

Rosita shut her eyes, pursing her lips as she had no answer to his question.

The road to the Hilltop was a silent one.

* * *

Sasha hummed softly as she took in the setting sun from the log she was sitting on. Each day at dusk, she would come here to escape from her troubles and responsibilities. This place at the edge of the forest was the only place she could find peace at.

Slipping quietly beside her, Jesus joined in to watch the drowning sun. They stayed together in silence; their shallow breathing the only sounds that could be heard.

"You come here often now," Jesus observed quietly.

"Yeah. It's one of the few places where I feel calm." Her eyes never broke their gaze from the brilliant sky.

"Where are the other places?"

"With Abraham. With my friends at Alexandria. Well, they used to be. I don't know anymore," Sasha sighed tiredly.

Jesus paused, turning his head to look at the woman. She didn't meet his gaze until he said, "Abraham is here."

"He is?" Sasha tugged at her necklace inadvertently. It was a necklace Abraham had worn until he had lost it at the Hilltop.

"He's waiting for you. He's insid-" Jesus was unable to finish as Sasha had already taken off.

She hadn't seen Abraham in weeks, which had made this experience even more lonely. As she raced back to the main house, Abraham's words came back to her.

She did not want to return to Hilltop at first. But Abraham had somehow convinced her. He told her that these people were still relying on her.

That she couldn't just bail because things got hard; that wasn't like her.

That it was best to stay away from Alexandria right now.

She had forgotten how much she had missed Abraham, but once she saw him inside the foyer a rush of emotion overwhelmed her.

So much so that she didn't notice the other woman standing beside the wall as she embraced him tightly.

He enveloped her, spinning her around as he did so. They both laughed and even Rosita couldn't help but smile.

"Hi," Abraham said awkwardly as he put her back down on the ground.

"Hi," Sasha giggled, smoothing down her hair.

"Hey." Rosita made her way towards the pair.

Sasha did not even hesitate to hug Rosita, surprising the woman.

"It seems like it's been so long," Sasha admitted sadly. "Ever since Glenn-"

"About him. That's why we're here, Sasha," Abraham interjected.

"Abe..." Rosita glared at the man, wondering why he had to kill the mood so suddenly.

"There's no point in beating around the bush," He retorted.

"Wait... you're not here to see me?" Sasha's face fell at this realization.

"Sasha, well yeah, I am happy to see you. It's just part of the package as to why we were sent here," Abraham tried to reassure her, but the damage had already been done.

"Glenn's escaped from the cell. And we're trying to find him." Rosita stated bluntly, deciding Abraham had screwed up enough already.

"Oh. Well, I haven't seen him. How about you, Jesus?" Sasha looked behind them at the man who was at the door.

"No. I haven't either... How did he even escape?" Jesus gave them a puzzled look.

"We guess that he tricked the woman who was guarding him into opening the cell and then killed her," Abraham answered; a tired look crossing his face as he did so.

"Well, I can check to see if anyone else saw him. I'll call a town meeting." Sasha tried to hide her misery with what she hoped was a firm response. "Jesus, can you, Abraham and Rosita scan the nearby area and forest for any signs Glenn was here?"

They all complied, going off to search into the woods and buildings while Sasha marched to the meeting center with tears in her eyes.

She shouldn't be feeling like this, not now. She couldn't let her loneliness and disappointment cloud her judgment.

There were more important things at hand like finding Glenn.

But the pain still hurt nonetheless.

* * *

"I take it that the situation has not improved in Alexandria," Ezekiel greeted, reading Rick and Carl's faces.

Meanwhile, Morgan stood to the side wondering what Rick had to say. But like the king, he sensed it wasn't anything good.

"They have only worsened if that's possible." Rick ran a frustrated hand through his hair.

"In what way?" Ezekiel leaned to the side of his throne curiously.

"Glenn has escaped."

Ezekiel and Morgan were taken back by this, especially the latter. He had built this cell after all, so how could he escape?

"That is a heavy-duty cell, Rick," Morgan explained. "I made sure that-"

"It wasn't the cell that was the problem... it was me. I shouldn't have put him in there to begin with." Rick shamefully lowered his head.

"Then why did you?" Ezekiel narrowed his eyes at the man; his gaze seeming to pierce Rick's soul.

"I just wanted to help... I stupidly thought I could help these people." Rick clenched his fist. "I thought I could make a difference! That's who I was before! But...he was right... I wasn't cut out for this world." He took in a sharp breath, shaking as he did so. "Ever since I was small, I just wanted to be a hero! I wanted to save people! But I realized too late... saving someone means not to save someone else," Rick concluded deadpanned, something unusual for him.

"That's how the world is; how the world's always been," Carl glowered; his eye glancing at his dad.

"That might be true, but that's a terrible mindset to have. Rick, I might not know exactly what you're going through. But I went through something similar when I lost Duane..." Morgan took a few steps closer to his friend. "I gave up on the existence of humanity. I felt like we deserved to die. We were awful, evil creatures who didn't deserve to be saved. I failed my wife and son. I wanted to die; I was fine if I were to die. Until I met a man...his name was Eastman. He instilled the hope in me for humanity. Eastman gave me another chance at life. You can look at this apocalypse as not saving people and failing others. But I look at it as brave strangers banding together to save each other!" Morgan insisted firmly.

"Morgan is correct. We all have failed people. I have failed my own people as a leader. We are humans; we are bound to fail. But we can also change for the better. We can correct our mistakes. Together, we can move mountains." Ezekiel stood up suddenly. "I saved Shiva. Shiva saved me. My people saved Morgan. Morgan saved you-"

"And Glenn saved you," Morgan finished.

"I am still learning that as well." Ezekiel started making his way closer to the trio. "Ever since the war, I have been wondering if I am fit to lead the Kingdom. The guilt of losing someone as young as Ben has been on my mind lately. However, I think there is still much more I have not accomplished."

"But you both have done so well...I've just tried to please everyone and gotten nowhere. And when I try to have confidence in my decisions, that backfires too. I either overestimate or underestimate my abilities; I can never just estimate," Rick muttered.

"I have overestimated my skills before." Ezekiel raised an eyebrow. "Also, that is your first mistake. Thinking you can please both sides. Someone will always be disappointed or as you said _not saved_."

"So have I. As well as underestimated." Morgan crossed his arms over his chest.

"Look, we're just here to see if Glenn was here. But I guess he's not," Carl interjected, aggravated with all this philosophical nonsense.

"No. He is not here. But if he was, what would you do with him, Rick?" Ezekiel questioned. "Should he even be under your guard?"

"I-I don't think so. I guess it would be better if he were here. It would ease the tension," Rick admitted. "But he's not here, right?"

"As I have stated before, he is not. But if he does turn up here, I will keep him. He will not be treated as a prisoner like he was in Alexandria. He will become a citizen of the Kingdom."

"That's fair. I actually think that is a good decision." Rick nodded thoughtfully.

"Good! You can take a look around the perimeter to see if he was here. I shall ask around to see if anyone has seen him," Ezekiel smiled.

As Ezekiel left the auditorium, Morgan took a moment to tell Rick that if Glenn does turn up he should be more sympathetic to him. That was the only way to help him, not to put him on trial or serve Glenn's head on a platter to the Oceanside women.

"That's what Eastman did for me. Because that's what really works in the face of something to fear. Knowing there's something to look forward to."

* * *

Glenn jolted upright from his desk. He groaned, rubbing his sore neck since he had fallen asleep.

"How long did I stay up?" He asked himself, noticing the smudge marks on his arms and hands.

Judging from the number of pages covered in ink, he had to have been awake writing for quite a while.

But the window told him that it was early morning as it was still dark outside.

Glenn yawned, but then yelped as the door suddenly flung open.

"Hey! You're up!" Jeffrey exclaimed. "That's good! The Commander wants to leave soon so she'll be glad to know you're almost ready."

"What... are you talking about?" Glenn regarded the young man with annoyance.

"We're going back to Alexandria this morning!" Jeffrey was practically spinning around the room. "I can't wait! I'm finally going to see my brother! And my nephew!"

Glenn shifted his eyes to the side, wondering if he should mention the presence of a niece too. In the end, he decided not to.

"Where is my sister?" Glenn rose to his feet.

"She's down in the front, loading the vehicles. C'mon, let's go! She's waiting for you!" Jeffrey was about rush out of the room, but noticed Glenn's clothes.

"Hold up. You need to change into an official uniform first. And clean yourself up," He studied the man, scratching his head.

"I would have. If you hadn't burst into my room all of a sudden." Glenn forced the kid out, shutting the door on his face.

"How can my sister stand him...What a pain."

* * *

"That uniform looks sharp on you," Maiya teased once she saw him.

"I should have known you'd choose a uniform like this," Glenn retorted, trying to hide his embarrassment.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Maiya put her hand on her hip in confusion.

"Your emo phase never wore off, did it?" Glenn gave a tight-lipped smile.

"Commander, you had an emo phase?!" Jeffrey questioned loudly.

"With red streaks in her hair and dark eyelin-"

"Shut up!" Maiya cut off her brother before he could continue. She cleared her throat, clearing the awkward atmosphere.

"This morning, we will be going to Alexandria again. But this time we will make it to our destination. We will try and form a partnership with the Alexandrians. A partnership that suits both our interests."

"Whatever you do, don't mention that they have to work for you," Glenn warned his sister.

"Glenn, of course not," Maiya pursed her lips. "We have to demonstrate we are a strong community who will be of great value to them. I would hope for them to come back here and see what we have to offer."

"So that they can take it from you? Because that's what basically happened. What has happened? Rick and company have gone from place to place, taking things from others. And then leaving the place to burn," Glenn stated nonchalantly.

This earned several whispers and worried glances from the youth and a glare from Jeffrey.

"Glenn..." Maiya frowned, beginning to grow tired of her brother's attitude.

"I'm trying to tell you what you're going to be up against. If Rick sees you as weak, he will think you can be overpowered. You have to remember we're the people who took down The Saviors."

Maiya considered this, knowing that they had to display their strength if they wanted to be taken seriously. There was also the issue of Glenn being a 'criminal' in Alexandria. They would probably want him back.

A knowing smirk crossed Maiya's face as she glanced at Jeffrey. She was not a genius by any means, but an idea was beginning to form in her resourceful mind.

* * *

"You know, I always wanted to D.C. but not like that," Tara piped from the passenger seat. "Not with the monuments in ruin."

"Yeah, it's a lot different from how I remember it." Michonne gave her a half-smile as she drove back to Alexandria.

"...Do you think they found him?" Tara asked as she fiddled with her fingers nervously.

"I don't know. And I'm not sure if I want them to," Michonne sighed, looking towards the rising sun above them.

"Same." Tara leaned back in her seat, putting her arms behind her head. "Wake me up when we get there, yeah?"

"Yeah," Michonne murmured back. She enjoyed the temporary silence as it gave her time to think. She wondered where Glenn was at the moment. If he was safe, much less alive. She prayed that he was at least alive even after all that's happened.

However, it wasn't long before Michonne had to wake her friend as something came into view in the stretch of the road.

"Wha-What is it?" Tara rubbed her eyes sleepily.

"Up ahead. It looks like Dwight and Sherry." Michonne pointed to the two figures that were leaning beside a wrecked motorcycle.

Michonne slowed down the car and pulled up to the pair, who had not recognized the vehicle.

"It's just us! Chill out!" Tara waved her arms around defensively.

"Sorry. We didn't know who you were." Dwight lowered his crossbow.

"This is Daryl's," Michonne observed, kneeling down beside the bike. "And it's what was missing."

"So Glenn crashed?" Sherry looked around nervously.

"It looks that way..." Michonne trailed off, glancing towards the forest around them.

"Then where did he go?" Tara also noticed Michonne and Sherry's uneasiness.

"The walkers might have gotten to him," Dwight offered, earning a frightened look from his wife.

"There's no trace of anything. No blood or bones." Michonne countered, unconvinced he was eaten. "It's as if he disappeared."

A sudden breeze of air sent a chill down their spines once Michonne said this. They seemed to be hunting a ghost amongst a world filled with the dead.

"When we first got here, we heard some cars in the distance," Sherry stated out of nowhere. "They were loud like there were a lot of them."

"Did you see anything?" Michonne questioned as the feeling of being watched suddenly came over her.

"No, they were too far away. But they didn't come from behind us, they were up ahead," Dwight gestured.

"Maybe it was just some of the other group," Tara suggested worriedly.

"None of them should have been going this way or this far though." Michonne's heart started to rapidly beat as the feeling of unease grew twofold. "Hilltop and The Kingdom aren't this way..."

Dwight, Sherry, and Tara immediately caught onto Michonne's panic, widening their eyes as they realized these cars did not belong to them.

"We need to go back. Right now!" Michonne commanded, motioning for Tara to get back into the car.

"What about the bike?!" Dwight exclaimed.

With a heavy heart, Michonne instructed him to 'just leave it.' Carrying it back would only slow them down, and they had no time to waste getting back to Alexandria.

Michonne sped through the empty street with Dwight and Sherry following close behind them. Even Tara was warning her to slow down as she was hitting 80 mph, but only one goal was on Michonne's mind.

Possible scenarios were invading her thoughts about who these people were and none of them were good.

Michonne gritted her teeth in anger as the one thought that kept coming back to her was that they were Saviors.

"No..." The word escaped Michonne's lips before she could stop them.

"What?" Tara jerked her head to glance at the woman.

"They can't be alive. We killed them!" Michonne yelled to herself.

"Who?!"

"The Saviors..." Michonne groaned as Alexandria came into view. Tara slowly turned her head, feeling her face grow white instantly.

Several unknown vehicles were just parked outside the walls facing towards the remaining members of their search party. No one had gotten out of the vehicles, making them more intimidating.

Rick, Abraham, Carl, and Rosita had their weapons drawn, waiting for the slightest movement from the strangers. The other citizens like Aaron, Gabriel, and Eric were surrounding the vehicles from behind with their own guns.

"What is this?!" Dwight shouted, jumping out from the car.

"Gabriel told us they arrived just before we did. But they haven't gotten out or anything," Rick answered, gesturing with his Colt Python.

"We have no idea who they are!" Gabriel wiped his brow from anxious sweat. "They've just been parked here menacingly."

"Then it's time we find out." Michonne reached behind her for her katana.

At that moment, the passenger door opened to one vehicle, revealing a woman.

"It's alright, you can lower your weapons," She stated with a smile.

"No. I think we're good," Rosita retorted.

The woman looked miffed by this, but quickly regained her composure. "Okay then. Just be sure not to let any _accidents_ happen."

"Who the hell are you?!" Rick demanded, fed-up with this woman's vagueness.

"My name is Maiya. My people have been watching for yours for a while now. We have learned a lot, so I should start off by thanking you for our mutual Negan problem."

This caught everyone completely off-guard, making the Alexandrians even tenser.

"You know about us? You knew about Negan?" Gabriel's jaw dropped.

"Yes, we actually worked for him. But we were able to escape long before you all met him. Our rebellion actually kind of put you in his warpath..." Maiya sighed, motioning with her head for her members to step out now.

"How the hell do you know all this?!" Abraham glared at the plentiful uniform-clad youth. "Who are you people?!"

"That's why we're here. My people need your help and we think you'll be a good ally for us. But like I said, we have scouted your community. And we have found out some pretty interesting things." Her demeanor suddenly darkened. "Like how you mistreated my brother."

At that moment, Rick and the Alexandrians knew they were screwed.

"B-Brother?" Rick asked weakly, lowering his gun.

"Yes. But there are no hard feelings about it. There are more important things to discuss like how we can work together. I hope you can at least give me a chance to expla-"

"Forget it! Where is your brother?" Rick raised his gun up again. "He's the one I want to talk to!"

Maiya frowned at this gesture. "He's right here. Glenn, get out." She knocked on the window of the car she came out in.

Glenn carefully climbed out from behind, tugging along someone else with him. This person had a bag over their head and their hands bound with cable ties.

"Hey, Rick. Don't look so surprised, we haven't even gotten to the best part," Glenn laughed. Unbeknownst to him, Netanya and the rest of Oceanside were staring at Glenn with pure hate.

"Who's that?" Rick's voice dropped.

"Rick, I want us to get along. Enough fighting; it's not getting anyone anywhere. That's why I decided to not go after Negan. I wanted my people to focus on something meaningful. History does have its eyes on us after all," Maiya tried to convince the man.

"Who is that?!" Rick demanded again.

"The reason you will work with us." Maiya exchanged a glance with her brother as he pulled the bag off.

Jeffrey shook his head back, displaying a warm smile, which soon turned to an oversized grin once he saw his brother and nephew.

"Ric-" But the bag was put back on him before he could greet his brother.

Maiya smirked at the horrified expressions of Alexandria's leader and son as she said,

"I guarantee it." 


	27. 스물 일곱 Affliction

"Anyone who is not one of us is a threat."

~Rick Grimes

The road to the Hilltop was a silent and awkward one. Abraham was seemingly too focused on the wheel while Rosita stared out of the passenger window solemnly.

"You've been avoiding me. You were never the one to give me the silent treatment- Why are you holdin' your tongue now?" Abraham finally asked, not breaking his gaze from the road.

"I thought you would be upset or something about me and Rick. And I didn't want any damn lecture," Rosita sneered.

"Me? Giving you a lecture? Rosita Espinosa, you are a grown-ass woman. Why the hell would I give you a lecture? Did I give one to you when you were with Spencer?" Abraham was slightly offended by this ridiculous accusation.

"Don't mention him!" The woman grimaced at the painful memory of her former boyfriend. This instantly shut the ginger up. "But no, you didn't. This is different though."

"Enough with the drama, Rosita! Tell me what the hell you're talkin' about." Abraham swerved to the side of the road roughly, putting the vehicle in park.

"Because a part of me still hurts after what you did! A part of me wanted to yell _you weren't the last man on earth_ when you walked in on us!" Rosita snapped; tears pouring from her reddened eyes. "A part of me wanted you to feel what I felt."

Abraham looked at her with a softened expression. He had no idea she had been hurting all this time. He had taken for granted that beneath her tough exterior lied a vulnerable and devastated woman.

"I know it's childish and stupid compared to everything that's happen-"

"I'm sorry," Abraham interrupted. "I was a douchebag- _I am a douchebag._ I never meant to hurt you like that."

"I would have understood, you know. Leaving me for Sasha. Sasha's great." Rosita rubbed her eyes with a gloved hand.

"Yeah, she is.." Abraham sighed. "And so are you. You both don't deserve an idiot like me." Abraham shifted the gear into drive.

He stayed quiet for a moment as he drove off before asking, "Do you... mm... have feelings for Rick?"

"At first, I wasn't sure. I thought that maybe he was just a rebound," Rosita exhaled deeply. "And I felt guilty. But now, whenever I'm around him... I feel calm. For once, I don't think of you or Spencer or anyone else. I just see him." Rosita smiled to herself.

"I know he may not always make the smartest decisions sometimes. His leadership skills can be... faulty. But he still persists and takes action. He never gives up on his people. Even right now with this Glenn situation, he still sees him as his friend," Rosita continued. "How many men are like that? How many men have remained like that?"

"If you were to get with someone else, I would hope it'd be a man like Rick Grimes," Abraham responded gently. "But if he ever breaks your heart, you come and tell me. I'll make sure he-"

"Alright, I get it!" Rosita laughed loudly, interrupting before he could finish his sentence.

Just as the pair was growing comfortable with each other, Abraham's cheerful mood shifted as something just occurred to him. This dramatic shift did not go unnoticed by Rosita as she asked:

"Hey, what's up?"

"I feel like I failed Rick...well, not just him, but all of y'all."

"What are you talking about?" Rosita glanced at him incredulously.

"That night... that night you were all captured... I wasn't there. I should have been there! Things might have gone differently."

"Abe, you were protecting Alexandria. You couldn't have known-" Rosita stopped, unable to utter the remainder of what happened that night.

"...That wasn't the only reason I stayed behind," His voice dropped as his face darkened. "I'm a coward."

"Abraham..." Rosita's eyes widened at this statement.

"Sasha had a dream. She told me I would die if I went with you to Hilltop. I tried telling her Maggie needed me. But she looked so scared. Hell, she even scared me. I finally let her convince me. And it's been killing me ever since," Abraham confessed; his grip tight on the steering wheel.

"You're not a coward." Rosita muttered. "How could you even say that?"

"No? Then tell me what I am then if I feel _relieved_ that I didn't get to see that!" Abraham exclaimed furiously.

Rosita shut her eyes, pursing her lips as she had no answer to his question.

The road to the Hilltop was a silent one.

* * *

Sasha hummed softly as she took in the setting sun from the log she was sitting on. Each day at dusk, she would come here to escape from her troubles and responsibilities. This place at the edge of the forest was the only place she could find peace at.

Slipping quietly beside her, Jesus joined in to watch the drowning sun. They stayed together in silence; their shallow breathing the only sounds that could be heard.

"You come here often now," Jesus observed quietly.

"Yeah. It's one of the few places where I feel calm." Her eyes never broke their gaze from the brilliant sky.

"Where are the other places?"

"With Abraham. With my friends at Alexandria. Well, they used to be. I don't know anymore," Sasha sighed tiredly.

Jesus paused, turning his head to look at the woman. She didn't meet his gaze until he said, "Abraham is here."

"He is?" Sasha tugged at her necklace inadvertently. It was a necklace Abraham had worn until he had lost it at the Hilltop.

"He's waiting for you. He's insid-" Jesus was unable to finish as Sasha had already taken off.

She hadn't seen Abraham in weeks, which had made this experience even more lonely. As she raced back to the main house, Abraham's words came back to her.

She did not want to return to Hilltop at first. But Abraham had somehow convinced her. He told her that these people were still relying on her.

That she couldn't just bail because things got hard; that wasn't like her.

That it was best to stay away from Alexandria right now.

She had forgotten how much she had missed Abraham, but once she saw him inside the foyer a rush of emotion overwhelmed her.

So much so that she didn't notice the other woman standing beside the wall as she embraced him tightly.

He enveloped her, spinning her around as he did so. They both laughed and even Rosita couldn't help but smile.

"Hi," Abraham said awkwardly as he put her back down on the ground.

"Hi," Sasha giggled, smoothing down her hair.

"Hey." Rosita made her way towards the pair.

Sasha did not even hesitate to hug Rosita, surprising the woman.

"It seems like it's been so long," Sasha admitted sadly. "Ever since Glenn-"

"About him. That's why we're here, Sasha," Abraham interjected.

"Abe..." Rosita glared at the man, wondering why he had to kill the mood so suddenly.

"There's no point in beating around the bush," He retorted.

"Wait... you're not here to see me?" Sasha's face fell at this realization.

"Sasha, well yeah, I am happy to see you. It's just part of the package as to why we were sent here," Abraham tried to reassure her, but the damage had already been done.

"Glenn's escaped from the cell. And we're trying to find him." Rosita stated bluntly, deciding Abraham had screwed up enough already.

"Oh. Well, I haven't seen him. How about you, Jesus?" Sasha looked behind them at the man who was at the door.

"No. I haven't either... How did he even escape?" Jesus gave them a puzzled look.

"We guess that he tricked the woman who was guarding him into opening the cell and then killed her," Abraham answered; a tired look crossing his face as he did so.

"Well, I can check to see if anyone else saw him. I'll call a town meeting." Sasha tried to hide her misery with what she hoped was a firm response. "Jesus, can you, Abraham and Rosita scan the nearby area and forest for any signs Glenn was here?"

They all complied, going off to search into the woods and buildings while Sasha marched to the meeting center with tears in her eyes.

She shouldn't be feeling like this, not now. She couldn't let her loneliness and disappointment cloud her judgement.

There were more important things at hand like finding Glenn.

But the pain still hurt nonetheless.

* * *

"I take it that the situation has not improved in Alexandria," Ezekiel greeted, reading Rick and Carl's faces.

Meanwhile, Morgan stood to the side wondering what Rick had to say. But like the king, he sensed it wasn't anything good.

"They have only worsened if that's possible." Rick ran a frustrated hand through his hair.

"In what way?" Ezekiel leaned to the side of his throne curiously.

"Glenn has escaped."

Ezekiel and Morgan were taken back by this, especially the latter. He had built this cell after all, so how could he escape?

"That is a heavy-duty cell, Rick," Morgan explained. "I made sure that-"

"It wasn't the cell that was the problem... it was me. I shouldn't have put him in there to begin with." Rick shamefully lowered his head.

"Then why did you?" Ezekiel narrowed his eyes at the man; his gaze seeming to pierce Rick's soul.

"I just wanted to help... I stupidly thought I could help these people." Rick clenched his fist. "I thought I could make a difference! That's who I was before! But...he was right... I wasn't cut out for this world." He took in a sharp breath, shaking as he did so. "Ever since I was small, I just wanted to be a hero! I wanted to save people! But I realized too late... saving someone means not to save someone else," Rick concluded deadpanned, something unusual for him.

"That's how the world is; how the world's always been," Carl glowered; his eye glancing at his dad.

"That might be true, but that's a terrible mindset to have. Rick, I might not know exactly what you're going through. But I went through something similar when I lost Duane..."Morgan took a few steps closer to his friend. "I gave up on the existence of humanity. I felt like we deserved to die. We were awful, evil creatures who didn't deserved to be saved. I failed my wife and son. I wanted to die; I was fine if I were to die. Until I met a man...his name was Eastman. He instilled the hope in me for humanity. Eastman gave me another chance at life. You can look at this apocalypse as not saving people and failing others. But I look at it as brave strangers banding together to save each other!" Morgan insisted firmly.

"Morgan is correct. We all have failed people. I have failed my own people as a leader. We are humans; we are bound to fail. But we can also change for the better. We can correct our mistakes. Together, we can move mountains." Ezekiel stood up suddenly. "I saved Shiva. Shiva saved me. My people saved Morgan. Morgan saved you-"

"And Glenn saved you," Morgan finished.

"I am still learning that as well." Ezekiel started making his way closer to the trio. "Ever since the war, I have been wondering if I am fit to lead the Kingdom. The guilt of losing someone as young as Ben has been on my mind lately. However, I think there is still much more I have not accomplished."

"But you both have done so well...I've just tried to please everyone and gotten nowhere. And when I try to have confidence in my decisions, that backfires too. I either overestimate or underestimate my abilities; I can never just estimate," Rick muttered.

"I have overestimated my skills before." Ezekiel raised an eyebrow. "Also, that is your first mistake. Thinking you can please both sides. Someone will always be disappointed or as you said _not saved_."

"So have I. As well as underestimated." Morgan crossed his arms over his chest.

"Look, we're just here to see if Glenn was here. But I guess he's not," Carl interjected, aggravated with all this philosophical nonsense.

"No. He is not here. But if he was, what would you do with him, Rick?" Ezekiel questioned. "Should he even be under your guard?"

"I-I don't think so. I guess it would be better if were here. It would ease the tension," Rick admitted. "But he's not here, right?"

"As I have stated before, he is not. But if he does turn up here, I will keep him. He will not be treated as a prisoner like he was in Alexandria. He will become a citizen of the Kingdom."

"That's fair. I actually think that is a good decision." Rick nodded thoughtfully.

"Good! You can take a look around the perimeter to see if he was here. I shall ask around to see if anyone has seen him," Ezekiel smiled.

As Ezekiel left the auditorium, Morgan took a moment to tell Rick that if Glenn does turn up he should be more sympathetic to him. That was the only way to help him, not to put him on trial or serve Glenn's head on a platter to the Oceanside women.

"That's what Eastman did for me. Because that's what really works in the face of something to fear. Knowing there's something to look forward to."

* * *

Glenn jolted upright from his desk. He groaned, rubbing his sore neck since he had fallen asleep.

"How long did I stay up?" He asked himself, noticing the smudge marks on his arms and hands.

Judging from the amount of pages covered in ink, he had to have been awake writing for quite awhile.

But the window told him that it was early morning as it was still dark outside.

Glenn yawned, but then yelped as the door suddenly flung open.

"Hey! You're up!" Jeffrey exclaimed. "That's good! The Commander wants to leave soon so she'll be glad to know you're almost ready."

"What... are you talking about?" Glenn regarded the young man with annoyance.

"We're going back to Alexandria this morning!" Jeffrey was practically spinning around the room. "I can't wait! I'm finally going to see my brother! And my nephew!"

Glenn shifted his eyes to the side, wondering if he should mention the presence of a niece too. In the end, he decided not to.

"Where is my sister?" Glenn rose to his feet.

"She's down in the front, loading the vehicles. C'mon, let's go! She's waiting for you!" Jeffrey was about rush out of the room, but noticed Glenn's clothes.

"Hold up. You need to change into an official uniform first. And clean yourself up," He studied the man, scratching his head.

"I would have. If you hadn't burst into my room all of a sudden." Glenn forced the kid out, shutting the door on his face.

"How can my sister stand him...What a pain."

* * *

"That uniform looks sharp on you," Maiya teased once she saw him.

"I should have known you'd choose a uniform like this," Glenn retorted, trying to hide his embarrassment.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Maiya put her hand on her hip in confusion.

"Your emo phase never wore off, did it?" Glenn gave a tight lipped smile.

"Commander, you had an emo phase?!" Jeffrey questioned loudly.

"With red streaks in her hair and dark eyelin-"

"Shut up!" Maiya cut off her brother before he could continue. She cleared her throat, clearing the awkward atmosphere.

"This morning, we will be going to Alexandria again. But this time we will make it to our destination. We will try and form a partnership with the Alexandrians. A partnership that suits both our interests."

"Whatever you do, don't mention that they have to work for you," Glenn warned his sister.

"Glenn, of course not," Maiya pursed her lips. "We have to demonstrate we our a strong community who will be of great value to them. I would hope for them to come back here and see what we have to offer."

"So that they can take it from you? Because that's what basically happened. What has happened. Rick and company have went from place to place, taking things from others. And then leaving the place to burn," Glenn stated nonchalantly.

This earned several whispers and worried glances from the youth and a glare from Jeffrey.

"Glenn..." Maiya frowned, beginning to grow tired of her brother's attitude.

"I'm trying to tell you what you're going to be up against. If Rick sees you as weak, he will think you can be overpowered. You have to remember we're the people who took down The Saviors."

Maiya considered this, knowing that they had to display their strength if they wanted to be taken seriously. There was also the issue of Glenn being a 'criminal' in Alexandria. They would probably want him back.

A knowing smirk crossed Maiya's face as she glanced at Jeffrey. She was not a genius by any means, but an idea was beginning to form in her resourceful mind.

* * *

"You know, I always wanted to D.C. but not like that," Tara piped from the passenger seat. "Not with the monuments in ruin."

"Yeah, it's a lot different from how I remember it." Michonne gave her a half-smile as she drove back to Alexandria.

"...Do you think they found him?" Tara asked as she fiddled with her fingers nervously.

"I don't know. And I'm not sure if I want them to," Michonne sighed, looking towards the rising sun above them.

"Same." Tara leaned back in her seat, putting her arms behind her head. "Wake me up when we get there, yeah?"

"Yeah," Michonne murmured back. She enjoyed the temporary silence as it gave her time to think. She wondered where Glenn was at the moment. If he was safe, much less alive. She prayed that he was at least alive even after all that's happened.

However, it wasn't long before Michonne had to wake her friend as something came into view in the stretch of the road.

"Wha-What is it?" Tara rubbed her eyes sleepily.

"Up ahead. It looks like Dwight and Sherry." Michonne pointed to the two figures that were leaning beside a wrecked motorcycle.

Michonne slowed down the car and pulled up to the pair, who had not recognized the vehicle.

"It's just us! Chill out!" Tara waved her arms around defensively.

"Sorry. We didn't know who you were." Dwight lowered his crossbow.

"This is Daryl's," Michonne observed, kneeling down beside the bike. "And it's what was missing."

"So Glenn crashed?" Sherry looked around nervously.

"It looks that way..." Michonne trailed off, glancing towards the forest around them.

"Then where did he go?" Tara also noticed Michonne and Sherry's uneasiness.

"The walkers might have gotten to him," Dwight offered, earning a frightened look from his wife.

"There's no trace of anything. No blood or bones." Michonne countered, unconvinced he was eaten. "It's as if he disappeared."

A sudden breeze of air sent a chill down their spines once Michonne said this. They seemed to be hunting a ghost amongst a world filled with the dead.

"When we first got here, we heard some cars in the distance," Sherry stated out of nowhere. "They were loud like there were a lot of them."

"Did you see anything?" Michonne questioned as the feeling of being watched suddenly came over her.

"No, they were too far away. But they didn't come from behind us, they were up ahead," Dwight gestured.

"Maybe it was just some of the other group," Tara suggested worriedly.

"None of them should have been going this way or this far though." Michonne's heart started to rapidly beat as the feeling of unease grew twofold. "Hilltop and The Kingdom aren't this way..."

Dwight, Sherry, and Tara immediately caught onto Michonne's panic, widening their eyes as they realized these cars did not belong to them.

"We need to go back. Right now!" Michonne commanded, motioning for Tara to get back into the car.

"What about the bike?!" Dwight exclaimed.

With a heavy heart, Michonne instructed him to 'just leave it.' Carrying it back would only slow them down, and they had no time to waste getting back to Alexandria.

Michonne sped through the empty street with Dwight and Sherry following close behind them. Even Tara was warning her to slow down as she was hitting 80 mph, but only one goal was on Michonne's mind.

Possible scenarios were invading her thoughts about who these people were and none of them were good.

Michonne gritted her teeth in anger as the one thought that kept coming back to her was that they were Saviors.

"No..." The word escaped Michonne's lips before she could stop them.

"What?" Tara jerked her head to glance at the woman.

"They can't be alive. We killed them!" Michonne yelled to herself.

"Who?!"

"The Saviors..." Michonne groaned as Alexandria came into view. Tara slowly turned her head, feeling her face grow white instantly.

Several unknown vehicles were just parked outside the walls facing towards the remaining members of their search party. No one had gotten out of the vehicles, making them more intimidating.

Rick, Abraham, Carl, and Rosita had their weapons drawn, waiting for the slightest movement from the strangers. The other citizens like Aaron, Gabriel, and Eric were surrounding the vehicles from behind with their own guns.

"What is this?!" Dwight shouted, jumping out from the car.

"Gabriel told us they arrived just before we did. But they haven't gotten out or anything," Rick answered, gesturing with his Colt Python.

"We have no idea who they are!" Gabriel wiped his brow from anxious sweat. "They've just been parked here menacingly."

"Then it's time we find out." Michonne reached behind her for her katana.

At that moment, the passenger door opened to one vehicle, revealing a woman.

"It's alright, you can lower your weapons," She stated with a smile.

"No. I think we're good," Rosita retorted.

The woman looked miffed by this, but quickly regained her composure. "Okay then. Just be sure not to let any _accidents_ happen."

"Who the hell are you?!" Rick demanded, fed-up with this woman's vagueness.

"My name is Maiya. My people have been watching for yours for awhile now. We have learned a lot, so I should start off by thanking you for our mutual Negan problem."

This caught everyone completely off-guard, making the Alexandrians even more tense.

"You know about us? You knew about Negan?" Gabriel's jaw dropped.

"Yes, we actually worked for him. But we were able to escape long before you all met him. Our rebellion actually kind of put you in his warpath..." Maiya sighed, motioning with her head for her members to step out now.

"How the hell do you know all this?!" Abraham glared at the plentiful uniform-clad youth. "Who are you people?!"

"That's why we're here. My people need your help and we think you'll be a good ally for us. But like I said, we have scouted your community. And we have found out some pretty interesting things." Her demeanor suddenly darkened. "Like how you mistreated my brother."

At that moment, Rick and the Alexandrians knew they were screwed.

"B-Brother?" Rick asked weakly, lowering his gun.

"Yes. But there's no hard feelings about it. There are more important things to discuss like how we can work together. I hope you can at least give me a chance to expla-"

"Forget it! Where is your brother?" Rick raised his gun up again. "He's the one I want to talk to!"

Maiya frowned at this gesture. "He's right here. Glenn, get out." She knocked on the window of the car she came out in.

Glenn carefully climbed out from behind, tugging along someone else with him. This person had a bag over their head and their hands bound with cable ties.

"Hey, Rick. Don't look so surprised, we haven't even gotten to the best part," Glenn laughed. Unbeknownst to him, Netanya and the rest of Oceanside were staring at Glenn with pure hate.

"Who's that?" Rick's voice dropped.

"Rick, I want us to get along. Enough fighting; it's not getting anyone anywhere. That's why I decided to not go after Negan. I wanted my people to focus on something meaningful. History does have it's eyes on us after all," Maiya tried to convince the man.

"Who is that?!" Rick demanded again.

"The reason you will work with us." Maiya exchanged a glance with her brother as he pulled the bag off.

Jeffrey shook his head back, displaying a warm smile, which soon turned to an oversized grin once he saw his brother and nephew.

"Ric-" But the bag was put back on him before he could greet his brother.

Maiya smirked at the horrified expressions of Alexandria's leader and son as she said,

"I guarantee it."


	28. 스물 여덟 Decomposition

"My blood, my family is standing right here."

~Glenn Rhee

Rick was currently feeling more awkward than outraged at the moment. He shifted his eyes uncomfortably to the driver's side, who was seemingly lost in the rock music that filled the car. He was trying to find the words to interrogate her, but it seemed that his previous days as a law enforcement officer were failing him when he needed them the most.

"Um, Commander, can I take this off now?!" Jeffrey practically shouted over the radio and bag that covered his head.

"Oh yeah," Maiya laughed. "Sorry, I forgot about that. Good acting by the way. I thought you would break character."

"You mean to tell me he was never in any danger?" Rick frowned at the woman.

"Of course not. Jeffrey's been my friend since the beginning. I would never hurt him," Maiya explained. "But _threatening_ him was the only way you would come back with us."

"Yeah, I thought it was crazy when she first told me. And I admit I was scared. I wasn't sure what might happen. But everything's all good now." Jeffrey stated from beneath the bag as Glenn removed the cable ties.

Jeffrey gave a sigh relief once he removed the bag, grinning widely at the nephew Rick practically demanded come along with him. Carl returned no sign of warmth, only glaring in response.

"C-Carl, you hardly look like the boy I remember...You've grown so much," Jeffrey stuttered, trying to ignore the obvious. "You're no longer the kid I used to wrestle with."

"Yeah, the end of the world tends to do that to people," Carl retorted, surprising both his dad and Glenn.

"Carl!" Rick turned to face his son, giving him a look to 'stop talking immediately.'

"It's fine. I was just being stupid... From what Glenn has told us, you all have been through so much crap since you arrived in D.C." Jeffrey's eyes turned sad.

Rick wanted to ask what exactly Glenn told his brother, but that would have to wait for now. There were more important things to know, which would help Rick assess the danger this group posed.

What sort of danger he and Carl were in.

"Jeff, I'm sorry that I seem so distant right now, but I'm just... stunned. I never imagined I would run into you again. I just accepted you were dead... It hurt less to erase you than to think you were still out in the world somewhere...searching for me." Rick hadn't realized he was crying until he finished his sentence.

"Richi- Rick, let me say something first. Something that I've been wanting to say for so long. I'm so, so sorry!" Jeffrey suddenly cried. "I never visited you once in the hospital. I was in Spain studying abroad and it wasn't until the end I heard what happened. I feel so guilty that I wasn't there for you."

Everyone was staring at the young man now, but he ignored their gazes and kept speaking. He might never have another chance and he didn't intend to waste it.

"I just hope... I hope you weren't there alone. I hope Carl, Lori, and Shane filled my place. I'm such an awful brother..." He whimpered.

At the mention of his wife and former best friend, Rick had to look away from his brother. Carl also lowered his head to hide his tears.

Glenn even bit his lip, knowing that this was probably a triggering memory for both father and son. Judging from their responses, he was correct, which led to a brief moment of awe for Glenn.

"Are-Are they dead?" Jeffrey's shoulders slumped, remembering that he hadn't caught a glimpse of them in Alexandria.

"Yes..." Rick let out a shaky breath. "And you're not an awful brother. I understand you couldn't be there. But you're here now."

"When I woke up in that hospital so long ago, I was alone. Everyone thought I was dead. But something told me my family wasn't. Alone and scared in this new world, I met a man named Morgan and his son Duane. They gave me another chance at life. You should have seen me riding through Atlanta like a cowboy," Rick chuckled softly, reflecting on his early days in the apocalypse. "Someone else gave me another chance at life too... I thought I was done for in that tank. There was no way I was going to escape from that horde of walkers. Until I heard his voice over that walkie talkie."

Glenn's breath was caught in his throat as he stared at Rick in sheer astonishment. He would have never believed that Rick would reference this story again if he had not heard it with his own ears. Even though he knew where the man was going with this, he wanted to hang onto every word he spoke.

Carl, who had never known about this occurrence, was listening intently to his dad. But what had also caught his attention was Glenn's disturbed expression. It hadn't been since Maggie's death had he seen Glenn this distraught.

"It looks like I keep falling into his debt. Not only did he save my life, but he's led me to my family... twice." Rick finally smiled at his brother. He couldn't explain it, but the rage, hate, and disappointment he once felt towards Glenn disappeared as he looked into the faces of his brother and son.

Maiya took notice of her brother's reaction and smiled to herself. The story of how he and Rick met was one that mirrored hers and Jeffrey's; one that demonstrated just how incredible humans could be.

"Wow... that's amazing. This man..." Jeffrey pondered out loud.

"He's sitting right beside you," Rick answered, taking a glance at the speechless Glenn.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Alexandria, the people who were not allowed to come along were in crisis. Their leader had just been _taken_ to a vague location known as The Castle. The Alexandrians were advised not to follow with Rick reassuring them he and Carl would be alright.

It didn't help that Glenn had seemingly betrayed his former friends in favor of a mysterious group led by his sister of all people.

"Maybe this group is friendly," Tara suggested hopefully to the skeptical group huddled outside the gates.

"You saw how they were. They threatened that kid." Rosita reminded her. "Who was that kid anyway?"

"He had to be important to Rick. Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone with them," Aaron pointed out.

"He kinda looked like Ric-" Olivia suddenly stopped herself as what she was indicating dawned on her. On reflex, she looked at the child she was holding for any sort of familial resemblance.

Everyone groaned loudly once this implication hit them, nearly slapping themselves in the face. From all people to resurface and be threatened, it just had to be Rick's possible brother.

"This is turning into some sort of damn soap opera," Dwight grumbled.

"Well, let's hope this is his long-lost brother and not son." Abraham was somehow the only one to find humor in this grim situation. However, this earned him a glare from Rosita.

"Anyway, this group cannot be trusted. They admitted to watching us. They know too much about us. Even without Glenn telling them..." Michonne furrowed her eyebrows in frustration at how easily they had been scouted.

"What the hell was that talk about wanting to get along? What do they even need help with? They seemed to be fine without us!" Dwight angrily exclaimed.

"Dwight, do you know who they are? Since they apparently worked for Negan?" Gabriel asked, trying to figure out what their leader had meant by _their rebellion had put them in Negan's warpath._

"Nope. Never have seen them. But I never knew about Oceanside either. To be honest, Negan kept me in the dark about who worked for him. Like he did other Saviors," Dwight replied with a frown.

"Where did they even go?" Sherry voiced her concerns. "Like the woman said they were going to a castle, but there are no castles here. Was that just a codename?"

"Who knows with these people. I don't like the looks of them honestly. Just how long were they watching us?" Eric crossed his arms over his chest.

"Glenn must really hate us if he's willing to side with them and threaten Rick's brother," Tara confessed gloomily.

"...He has every right to. I mean, what have we done for him? What do we have to offer? At least he has a family now," Rosita muttered, kicking at a rock.

"Whatever. Screw him. We have bigger things to focus on. Like if these juvenile delinquents are the new version of The Saviors," Abraham grimaced as he adjusted his backpack. "I want to be prepared if they are trouble. Because there is a strong possibility they will be."

"I agree. We don't want another surprise again..." Gabriel shuddered at the memory of the last time they had underestimated The Saviors. "If things do go wrong, the other communities should already know what is happening."

"I was thinking the same damn thing. I'm going to alert Sasha," Abraham declared without hesitation.

"Is someone going to alert Ezekiel then?" Aaron wondered.

"No, I don't want people to split up again. When too many people are split up, trouble always follows. If there is an attack here, we need everyone here," Michonne stressed, which brought forth more arguments.

As the group quarreled amongst themselves, a figure listened in from the distance. It clenched its fist in determination at the opportunity that arose.

Once it had enough of the bickering, it stepped away and went back to its home where a number of people were waiting.

"I'm done waiting around. I'm done being merciful. How are we honoring our fallen by letting this murderer live?" Netanya demanded as she walked through the door.

"This is how we survived for so long. We got shit done ourselves. We didn't take chances. We didn't listen to any man because the one time we did he destroys us." Netanya was strangely calm while her women were getting fired up.

"I'm not going to let him escape. Not again. We will show him what it feels like to lose his home. To lose someone he loves," Netanya concluded; her voice dripping with sadism. "And then we will kill him."

"Grandmother... he's already lost his wife! You're going to kill his sister too?!" Cindy yelled incredulously.

"Maybe not. We will show him the same 'mercy' he showed us. We will ask her to hand him over."

"You know she won't. You saw how menacing they looked... Please, grandmother. I don't want this anymore. I just want us- all of us- to abandon this. I don't want to lose any more of you," Cindy pleaded desperately. "Especially you, grandmother. You're all I have left."

"I'm doing this for you too, Cindy. I love you. But we cannot live in peace with people like _him_ walking around! He's dangerous. He's the real threat."

"Grandmothe-"

"Cindy, end of discussion," Netanya finished. "Tonight, we set out for The Castle. Gather as many weapons you can from the armory. Especially the explosives and guns. Also, bows and arrows and spears."

"Castle? They're at the Smithsonian museum you used to take me to?" Cindy briefly broke from her remorseful state once this was brought up.

"It looks like. That's the only castle nearby, but the Alexandrians don't seem to know that," Netanya responded smugly.

* * *

"No freaking way..." Carl's eye widened at the sight in front of them as he pressed his face against the window.

"You weren't exaggerating when you mentioned a castle..." Rick leaned forward over the dashboard.

"Probably the only castle in America and we were able to secure it. There were only about sixty of us with only the clothes on our backs and a few bullets when we arrived. This place was completely overrun. And with a huge lawn surrounding it, you should have seen it. Everyone thought I was crazy, but something told me this place would be the best place to hole up in," She described proudly as they all climbed out. "Good thing we didn't just have guns. The war had left us with practically nothing. Axes, machetes, chains, sickles, and swords were things we scavenged along the way. Oh, and homemade explosives."

"Geez, sis. You'll need to prepare some sort of recorded speech if you have to keep explaining this," Glenn offered sarcastically, causing Maiya to scowl at him.

"I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. Back in Georgia, we also secured an overrun prison," Rick clarified, trying to match his strength with her's subconsciously.

"I built the wall! All those architect classes finally paid off!" Jeffrey wrapped his brother and nephew into a side hug from behind.

"You all sure like to brag." Carl glared up sternly at his uncle.

"Each one of the members is a genius in something. Architecture, chemistry, medicine, engineering, art, weapons, botany, military, and even fashion are just some of what we excel in," Maiya continued, leading the father and son towards the garden. "Yeah, I know. Why would fashion be of importance? But these uniforms are made of denim, which makes it harder for those monsters to bite through," Maiya laughed at the father and son's reaction to this.

"That is one of the reasons I wanted to reach out to you. We would like any one of your geniuses to work with us. Specifically someone in the science or medical field."

"We don't have any doctors or scientists. They are either dead or fake or both," Carl replied, unimpressed with this tour. Rick and Glenn exchanged a wary look with one another at this, knowing exactly who he was referring to.

"Seriously? Those are the last people who should be dead!" Jeffrey added. "That sucks. How did they even die?"

"Ask your brother," Rick and Glenn suggested at the same time, sending them both into shock.

"Uh, we can talk about that later." Maiya quickly changed the subject before things unraveled. "We were able to cultivate this garden. But this is our only food source. We've just been living on a vegan diet..." Maiya's face contorted into one of disgust as did Jeffrey's.

"I want to start up a trade for other food sources. We have a variety of fruits and vegetables and we would like some livestock in return."

"That can be arranged," Rick distantly answered as he studied the crops. This was the garden of Eden compared to their measly one back in Alexandria.

"Perfect! Since you don't have any medics, I can send one to you if you send some sort of engineer here," Maiya grinned.

"An engineer? For what?" Rick raised an eyebrow.

"Can I tell him? I want to be the one to tell him!" Jeffrey chirped.

"Go ahead," Maiya shared a knowing glance with her brother.

"We have a helicopter! We're trying to start it up again! It's next to a museum nearby!"

"What?!" Carl and Rick both startled at this.

"You're in the Smithsonian. Surrounded by other Smithsonian's! How else do you think we got our equipment?" Maiya exclaimed, gesturing her arms out wide.

"Certainly not by stealing from those poor garbage people," A voice said from behind them. Dante emerged with a smirk on his face.

"Tsk, don't remind me of those creeps. They had what was coming to them." Maiya pursed her lips.

"What was this about not fighting?" Rick reminded her of the talk she gave him back in Alexandria.

"It wasn't much of a fight once we were through with them," The woman snickered. "Humanity was better off without them."

"Yeah, they wanted us to give them our weapons and food," Jeffrey stated glumly. "They weren't good people."

"And they had a pile of things they had no use for," Maiya insisted, continuing their tour to the inside of the castle. "Why let that go to waste?"

Rick and Carl could not contain their amazement at the interior, which Jeffrey gleefully took notice of from beside the pair. Maiya, to a lesser extent, noticed this as well and felt accomplished.

"I have a schedule for everyone here. Everyone gets up before dawn for exercises and training. Afterwards, we eat and everyone is assigned a role to do their own thing. The medics and scientists all work in the lab while the rest of us either make runs, guard the castle, or repair and adjust things around here."

"Medics and scientists? They might have that sort of background, but I would hardly call them that," Rick retorted, half-jokingly.

Jeffrey knew his brother well enough to take this comment as a joke. However, Maiya and to a lesser extent, Dante took offense to this jab. Glenn was already biting his tongue to keep from laughing.

"You want some sort of paperwork? A lot of good that degree did the _official ones_ ," Dante shot back.

"They're probably the ones who caused all of this. And as usual, the younger generations have to fix their mess," Maiya sighed.

"Hey, I-I didn't mean to- It was just a joke." Rick put his hands up in defense, not wanting to get on their bad side.

"Dad, aren't you going to ask them your famous question?" Carl pointed out.

"Might as well. I hate to ask this, but how many walkers have you killed? How many people have you killed? Why?"

Jeffrey, Dante, and Maiya all looked at each other before the latter shouted:

"What? What kind of dumbass question is that? That would be really psychotic to keep a kill count! And yes, we have killed before. Who hasn't in this world? It's how you survive!" Maiya shrieked, beginning to doubt if Rick and Alexandria were suitable allies and her face showed it.

Rick remained silence for once unable to believe how easily this woman could run circles around him. She was like her brother, but at the same time the complete opposite. She was hard to figure out, which bothered him.

So as she showed them the defense towers, weapons storage, briefing room, and eventually the helicopter site, he observed how she conspicuously left out the supposed lab.

As much as this castle interested him, he wanted to speak to his brother in private. This group was perfect- almost too perfect for his liking. They were organized, intelligent, and talented, which made for a deadly combination.

However, he wondered if he would enjoy finding out just exactly what his brother had been a part of.

* * *

"You missed me so much you're already back." Sasha smiled warmly at Abraham. When he didn't smile back, she knew something was wrong.

"Abe... what's going on?"

"Rick and Carl... they've been taken by Glenn's sister who may also have Rick's brother!" Abraham mentally facepalmed as he realized just how strange that sentence was.

"...What?"

"I know it sounds crazy but-"

"But you just drop this Star Wars reveal on me! This makes no sense! Where did she even come from?!" Sasha cried.

"I have no idea. This group just appeared at Alexandria and Glenn was with them. They made Rick and Carl go with them- they had this kid who looked like a Grimes, but we don't know exactly who he is. Alexandria is practically gone to hell in a handbasket. I had to even sneak away to get over here!"

Sasha was at a loss for words as Abraham continued. She had to sit down to process all of this before she asked him:

"Where did they go?"

"We didn't follow them... We weren't allowed to. But they mentioned a castle."

"Castle? There are no castles here!" Sasha groaned.

"That's what we thought too. Sherry suggested that it could be a codename for something else, which makes the most sense."

"There is a map lying around here somewhere." Sasha started pulling open drawers in her office.

A knock at the door interrupted them and Jesus entered.

"King Ezekiel is here."

Sasha seemed surprised he was here until Jesus reminded her that he was here to discuss their trade.

"Just what I needed at the moment," Sasha sighed. "Bring him in...Wait, is his tiger here?"

"Of course. He hardly ever goes anywhere without her," Jesus answered, glancing at Abraham. "Is right now a bad time?"

"No," Sasha replied the same time Abraham said, "Yeah."

"We can go outside to meet him. Besides he should know about all this." Sasha rose to her feet. "Jesus, I need a favor. Can you try to find me a map of the D.C. area? We're trying to locate something."

"Sure. I'll look for it while you talk with the King. He is waiting right outside."

As Jesus said, King Ezekiel was on the porch with Shiva, who was playing with a box. Nevertheless, Sasha and Abraham both tensed up at the sight of the big animal.

"Greetings!" Ezekiel waved. "It has been too long since I have seen you, Abraham. Sasha, you look wonderful as always."

"Thanks, Ezekiel. It is nice to see you too." Sasha forced a smile despite her concern.

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I will not be able to trade livestock with you for some time. Our pigs have caught an illness."

"It's fine, I understand these things happen," Sasha stated dejectedly. "But we can still provide chickens if you can make up for our medical storage."

"That will be no problem at all," Ezekiel grinned.

"Sasha! I found it!" Jesus came running out of the house with a map in hand.

"Thank you so much, Jesus." Sasha took it from him and put it in her back pocket.

"Forgive my intrusion, but what is that map for?" Ezekiel asked, sensing something else was happening.

"Guess this is a good as time as any. Rick and Carl have been taken by a new group that includes Glenn and his sister... and possibly Rick's brother?" Sasha looked to Abraham for confirmation, which he nodded his head verification.

Ezekiel and Jesus glanced at each other in confusion. Even Shiva had stopped playing with her box to look at the group.

Abraham thought this would be the time to start explaining what little he knew. "This group has admitted to scouting us and watching us. They know a lot about Alexandria and have even worked for Negan at one point. But they didn't claim to be Saviors... They wanted our help in something. They want to work with us."

"Do you know where they went?" Jesus scratched his head, becoming even more confused.

"That's what we're trying to figure out. They were vague, but they said they were going to a castle." Sasha pulled out the map.

"The Smithsonian Castle! It is not too far from where I used to work and where I rescued Shiva!" Ezekiel concluded ecstatically. Hearing her name, Shiva let out a chuff.

"Yeah, it has to be there. Which is actually a great place to live in." Jesus tapped his chin.

"Well, then do we start heading over there?" Sasha was ready to hop into a car and see the place.

"No. We don't know exactly how dangerous these brats are. The last thing we want to do is underestimate them." Abraham gritted his teeth. "We need to scout them too before we do anything."

"Then we need to be sure this is the place... I want to know who we might be up against," Sasha specified.

"The best way is to sneak into the compound," Jesus suggested.

"Jesus... if this is going where I think it is-" Sasha started, but Jesus cut her off.

"I can do this. I-"

"No," She interrupted. "If something goes wrong, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself. There has to be another way."

"Like what?" Abraham bluntly questioned. "The man knows what he's doing."

"I can even take a walkie talkie with me," Jesus reassured.

Sasha felt tears welling up in her eyes, but she held them back as embraced the man.

"Okay. But promise you will come back here. I need you. We all do."

"I promise."

* * *

The sun was setting and on top of the castle made the view look even more spectacular. Rick and Carl were preparing to head back shortly after they ate dinner. At dinner, Rick planned to announce he would work with this group.

Of course, this would be a ploy to find out these people's true motivations and to keep his brother and people safe.

He didn't truly believe that his brother was out of harm's way yet. And he certainly didn't believe his people would ever be.

But given the corner he was in, he didn't have much choice to work with this group. He couldn't just refuse them while he was in their territory.

While they had his brother.

While they had this strength.

What also linked the two groups was the passionate belief to rebuild civilization. Rick wanted that more than anything; to restore humanity.

If these people turned out to be trustworthy, they would have a real chance of accomplishing this goal.

But there was always that chance- _that doubt._

"Do you plan on telling him?" A voice broke Rick from his inner thoughts. He had been so lost in them that he didn't hear Glenn come up to the top.

"Tell who?"

"Jeffrey," Glenn answered, looking down at something in his hands. Pieces of paper banded together to form a journal.

"Tell him what?" Rick narrowed his eyes at the man.

"About Shane. How he died. About Lori. How she died. His niece. How Carl lost his eye." The wind picked up suddenly as Glenn's voice became sharper. "Or what about Daryl? The man you called a brother?"

"Don't you screw this up, Glenn!" Rick shouted.

"I'm not going to tell him. But you at least owe him that." Glenn turned his head back to face the sunset; the wind whipping his hair and journal furiously.

Rick took in a deep breath before speaking. "What I said earlier, I meant it. I really am thankful for you saving my life. For leading me to my son and wife. And now, my brother. I know I don't deserve all of this. But just hear me out, Glenn. What you're facing is something I can't even begin to understand. What you've lost is unimaginable. That would have broken anyone, and you've been the strongest person I have ever known. You need time to grieve and I should have sympathized with that. Instead, I inserted myself into something I had no business in. I'm so sorry, Glenn. For everything you've lost and for every way I have wronged you."

Glenn remained silent at this, only the sound of the wind howling was heard. But even with Glenn's head turned away from him, he could see the tears hitting his papers.

"I-I.."

But Glenn's words were never spoken as Jeffrey had entered.

"Dinner's ready!"

Glenn shuddered at this and hurriedly exited the tower, leaving the brothers alone.

"Hm. He must have been hungry," Jeffrey thought out loud.

Rick wanted to be angry with his brother's intrusion, but his innocent face couldn't allow him to.

"I've been wanting to talk you. But I haven't gotten the chance. Commander Rhee sure had us busy today," He laughed.

"Jeff, I've been wanting to talk with you too. There's just so much I need to say. But first-" Rick enveloped him into a hug. "You don't know how glad I am you are alive."

Jeffrey hugged his brother back, sobbing into his shoulder. "I thought you and Carl hated me or something. You both seemed so aloof."

Rick's heart melted at this. The last thing he wanted was for his younger brother to think he was ungrateful he was alive.

"Carl's been through so much as you can obviously see. He was lost his eye to a bullet. He had to see Lori die and he was the one to..." Rick paused, letting this sink in for an appalled Jeffrey. "He's had to grow up fast."

"I-I would have never thought... Oh, Rick. Here, I have been living a sheltered life when you two have seen hell."

"And there's more... one day, I'll tell you. But not right now. There's something more important you need to know." Rick was finally crying at this tragic reunion. "You have a niece."

"Wha-What? What's her name?" Jeffrey cried. "Where is she?"

"Judith. She was the last thing Lori gave to this world. She's back in Alexa-"

But their temporary joy was cut short as an explosion filled the air.

Jeffrey and Rick broke from their embrace and looked towards where the explosion had hit.

The garden, which was quickly being consumed in flames.

Jeffrey let out a strangled cry at the sight, hanging onto his brother tightly. Rick could only look on in horror at what stood in the distance.

At the gate, stood Netanya and her Oceanside women with their weapons drawn.

And their eyes burning with a fierce vengeance.


	29. 스물 아홉 Children of Blood

"No more kid stuff."

~Carl Grimes

 _"You cannot leave here. Not while Rick is gone." Gabriel stood alone as he blocked the gate._

 _"Move. Or we will move you." Netanya raised her trident in a display of her power as her women did the same with their weapons._

 _"No." Gabriel didn't back down, standing taller in resolution._

 _Netanya let out a low snarl, pushing the man roughly to the pavement with her trident._

 _"Someone like you would never understand." Netanya looked down at the former priest in pity. "Let's go. We have wasted enough time here."_

 _As the Oceanside women stormed out of the city, the rest of the Alexandrians hurried to the scene. They made no attempt to stop the women and instead to Father Gabriel's aid. He had a bleeding gash on his head, but other than that he was okay._

 _"Wherever they go..." Michonne's fingers grazed her katana handle as she watched the vehicles start up and disappear into the distance. "I hope they never come back."_

* * *

"There has to be some other way... We can turn back right now. We can make this work somehow, grandmother. It can get bet-" Cindy started to say before Netanya spoke over her.

"Cindy. Just wait by the cars if you can't do this," Netanya ordered.

Cindy felt hot tears burn her face as she lowered her head in shame. She bit her lip in frustration, watching as her group marched on towards the castle wall.

"Why aren't you with them?" A voice from behind asked, startling the young woman.

"...Jesus? What are you doing here?" Cindy quickly rubbed her eyes free of tears.

"Sorry for scaring you. I planned on using the element of surprise, but it looks like that's ruined now. Anyway, I heard that Rick and Carl were taken here. I volunteered to come check the place out." He paused, taking out his walkie talkie. "Sasha, I'm here. It doesn't look good though. The Oceanside women are also here."

It took a few seconds before Sasha responded on the other end. "Why are they there? What's going on?"

"Cindy's right next to me. The others are heading towards the castle... Why are you here?" He directed the last part at Cindy, but it was still heard over the walkie talkie.

As if on cue, an explosion rocked the perimeter and sent the pair to their feet.

"Jesus! What's happening?!" Sasha's voice yelled over the device.

"T-They're attacking. The women-it's a war zone over here! I have to go!" Jesus quickly put away the walkie talkie and pushed Cindy behind him.

Cindy clutched onto the man's jacket, muttering "no" over and over again in terror.

"Jesus! Are you okay?! Jesus!" Sasha cried out over the walkie talkie, trying to get a visual of what was happening.

But her cries went left unanswered.

* * *

"Anna! Kiana! Anik! Dallas! Get your rifles ready!" Maiya ordered, striding outside of the castle towards their armory, located in the Ripley Center. "Go to the principal tower!"

The scene was chaotic, and Maiya was trying her best to keep everyone calm. She had already ordered Lillith and some others to put out the fire.

"Anyone who is not willing to fight, take shelter! Everyone else pick up a weapon and get to a defense tower!" Maiya shouted over the noise, passing out guns to the line of people who gathered outside the armory.

"Maiya!" Glenn came running to the front of the line, only for a gun to be shoved into his hands.

"I know these women! Maiya, listen!" He proclaimed, stopping her from handing out any more guns. "I think they're here for me!"

"What?! Glenn, now isn't the time! Get to a defense tower and take aim!" She pushed him aside and continued her work.

"They want me! They're only doing this because I'm here! If I- If I give myself to them, they'll stop!" He explained desperately.

"They're attacking because you're here?" Maiya looked into his eyes deeply, trying to understand what was happening.

"Yes," He sighed, turning away from her. "None of you deserve to get hurt or die for me. It's time I finally reap what I've sewn."

He started to walk off, heading directly towards the gate. He narrowed his eyes as he grew closer; the dying flames illuminating his path.

Netanya's face was coming into full view when he was suddenly pushed back and spun around in the opposite direction.

"Wha-What? Maiya! What are you doing?!" He tried to break free of his sister's grip as she pulled him back towards safety.

"If they want my brother, then that's all more of a reason to fight them!" She shouted over her shoulder. All the while, Glenn continued struggling against her death grip in vain.

She pulled him all the way back to the armory, where they met up with the stressed Grimes brothers.

"Maiya! These are my people! Let me talk to them!" Rick cried.

"These are your people? Then why are they here?!" Maiya roared back, convinced this was a conspiracy plot against her people.

"I don't know! But tell your people to hold their fire!" Rick protested. "I can reason with them!"

"Rick, this looks beyond your control," Jeffrey interjected.

"Trust me. I don't want to see anyone else get hurt," Rick stated firmly.

"Alright," Maiya glared at the man, gesturing up to the defense tower where her sharpshooters were. "Jeffrey, open the gate."

"But Comm-"

"I know what I'm doing. Just open it," She responded tensely.

"Thank you." Rick shut his eyes briefly before walking towards the gate with his brother.

Meanwhile, Maiya pulled her brother aside and whispered something in his ear. He looked at her worriedly for a second and then ran off towards the principal tower. She watched as he did so, standing by the castle doors with her gun ready to fire.

"Netanya! Why are you doing this?!" Rick yelled out to her, stopping in his tracks.

"You know why, Rick. Hand us over Glenn and we'll leave!" She called back as the gate slowly started to open.

"Will you kill him?"

"He deserves worse than mere death!" Netanya was already marching forward towards the entrance.

"You know I can't hand him over."

"You can't or you won't?" Netanya was in the compound with her women halfway through the opened gate. "Even after all he's caused? After what he's done?"

"I can't be the judge, jury, and executioner anymore." Rick shook his head, his hand ghosting over his Colt Python.

"Anymore? You never were!" Netanya raised her trident as a signal and the women took up their weapons, aiming at the towers.

As Netanya threw her trident at the rigid man, a horrifying scream echoed throughout the compound.

Rick knew that he wouldn't be able to move out of the way in time, so he made no intention of doing so. It would only prove futile.

So as the trident headed down straight for him, Rick readied himself for what could come after life.

What a strange phenomenon, this was perhaps the fourth time someone was about to greet death without a struggle.

But the trident missed its mark as Rick had been pushed back by none other than his little brother, taking the impalement for himself.

At the very same moment Jeffrey went down, bright spotlights were projected down on the invading group.

Netanya had barely shielded her eyes before dozens of gunshots rang through the early spring night, taking down every single woman who was standing.

From up above the castle, a screaming Carl and other marksmen were firing nonstop into the women. Glenn was also with them, but he had only given the order like his sister had instructed him to. His face showed no sign of remorse. But neither did it display pleasure in what had just happened.

On the ground, a crying Rick was comforting a bleeding Jeffrey. The trident had missed his internal organs, but hit his legs.

"You're going to be okay. Listen, Jeff, you can't die on me! Not you!" Rick sobbed, trying to move the young man without damaging his legs further.

"Rick... I'm sorry... I wasn't fast enough.." Jeffrey weakly stated.

Several of the members came running to the scene to help, lifting Jeffrey carefully in their arms.

"Get a stretcher!" Dante ordered. "We can't move him any further without one!"

A stone-faced Maiya was standing to the side, watching this terrible scene unfold. She made no effort to console her injured friend, believing that she would only be in the way of her medics.

Rather, she wanted to see the dying faces of those who had done this.

A ghost of a smirk was etched on her lips as she glanced down at how pathetic they all looked. Their breathing was slowing, their cries and moans were growing quieter, and their twitching and convulsions were ceasing.

A bloodied and severely weakened Netanya was desperately trying to reach for a stranded gun before she was stopped by Maiya.

"What did you expect? You come here demanding my brother, harm my friend, and burn my garden? You thought you actually had a chance?" Maiya kept her voice steady even though she was silently fuming.

"B-Bitch," Netanya spat blood at her.

Maiya hurriedly wiped it off her in disgust before pulling out her sickle.

"Like hell I'm not going to finish the job this time," She muttered to herself, driving it through the woman's skull with such force that it went through the back of her head.

She did the same for every single woman.

All 32 of them.

* * *

Cindy was left a sobbing mess, crying uncontrollably from where she had witnessed everything go down. She was powerless, unable to intervene and stop it.

She had witnessed everything alone with no one to comfort her.

During the ceasefire after the explosions, Jesus had pressed on with his original mission. He regretted leaving Cindy by herself, be had to take advantage of the temporary distraction. Jesus had snuck behind the women as they entered through the gate. His long hair had given him the unassuming appearance that he was apart of them.

He darted to the right side of the garden, slinking his way through the smoldering remains.

He guessed that the battle would take much longer and that he would have enough time to sneak in and out of the castle.

That was until he was given a firsthand experience of the massacre from the unburnt area of the garden.

That was when he realized just how much danger he was in.

"Sasha," He anxiously whispered into the walkie talkie. "It's over."

A crackling sound was heard as she answered back. "Jesus! Oh, thank God. You're safe! What just happened?"

He waited a while before responding as some people were walking nearby. "They're all dead...They were killed in one go.."

"The castle people are dead?!"

"No... Oceanside is. These castle people shot them down." Jesus sighed at the gruesome memory.

A curse was heard on the other head along with several utterances from Ezekiel and Abraham. They seemed to be arguing.

"Jesus, is Cindy still with you?"

"No, I am inside the wall. I left her outside where I originally found her," He admitted.

"Get out of there a right now. Take Cindy with you and get back here. Forget everything else. Just get out." There was an edge to her voice.

"Rodger that," Jesus hung up and immediately groaned when he looked at the wall.

The gate had been shut.

Suddenly, Jesus dodged to the side, missing being narrowly sliced by a sickle from behind.

Jesus was immediately sent into fight mode with his objective being to disarm the attacker. He faced them in a defensive stance, ready for their next move.

However, each fist the attacker sent his way was blocked, making them growl in frustration.

Now it was his turn to be on the offensive. He kicked his attacker roughly, sending them to the ground. He didn't even give them a chance to get back up, pinning himself over them and taking the sickle for himself.

He still didn't have a good view of their face as the area had returned to its dark state. But from the noises they had been making, he assumed them to be female.

"Who are you?" He applied more pressure to his knees and hands, keeping this person restrained.

She didn't answer, only struggling further to get back up. Her breathing was slowing like she was giving up from exhaustion.

Then her knee jerked upwards as well as her hips, hitting Jesus and finding an opportunity to push him off.

She kicked him in the mouth and was about to land another kick when he dodged it yet again.

He tackled her to the ground and they started wrestling violently and dirty. They were scratching, hitting, punching, and kicking one another, all in hopes of tiring out the other.

While Jesus was an expert in martial arts, this woman used more boxing and wrestling tactics to fight. But they both seemed to be evenly matched, their many nicks and bruises proving this fact.

Unexpectedly, Jesus grabbed the woman and shoved her against the castle wall. She let out a cry since her hand had been cut by an uneven stone.

"You want to know who I am?" She finally spoke between pants. "I'm-"

The incoming fist interrupted her before she could reveal her identity, but it mattered no less.

She was ready this time.

She caught his arm just in time, and with all her strength she swung the man around and into the wall.

He let out a groan as he collided with the stone, but Maiya didn't stop there. She rammed his head into the stone several times to make sure this fight was definitely over.

The blood that poured out of his head and onto the ground told her it was.

* * *

In the infirmary, Jeffrey was lying sedated in bed with his brother and nephew by his side. The trident had managed to be pulled out and his wounds had been stitched up.

However, there was a chance he might not be able to walk again.

When Rick heard this news, he nearly lost it. He felt himself teetering on the edge of a breakdown again.

It would just so happen after all the progress he made, after all sense of hope he regained, it would come crashing down on him once more.

Like everything eventually did.

He struggled to remain calm, desperately wanting to take out his pain on something.

 _Someone._

The ones who had done this.

But those people were dead, and their blood seeped into his clothes as proof.

Thoughts of hate and rage started to plague his mind, convincing him to take these feelings out on the next best thing.

The one who started it all. Glenn Rhee.

It wasn't until Rick saw his son humming to Jeffrey by his bedside that halted these intrusive thoughts, and the memory of Carl on that bed brought him back to reality.

"When you were shot the second time," Rick stated as he approached his family. "I told you I wanted to show you the new world. This new world- it's pretty scary. But it has so much potential and beauty in it."

"Sometimes I think Carol made the right decision. It's hard to keep hope in a world like this. But then I see you, and Judith. And now, Jeffrey. And I think back to my days of happiness with you all. As I see the worst of humanity, I also see its greatest strengths." Rick looked down gently at his sleeping brother. "I see something worth protecting."

From the corner, Glenn had been solemnly watching this display. Externally, his face gave no impression of sympathy. Internally, however, he felt a foreign emotion wash over him.

A feeling of sentimentality.

The urge to see his sister grew, but he knew she would be busy at the moment. So he quietly left, heading back to his room in silence and isolation.

* * *

Along the way, several people had stopped to ask Maiya if she needed help.

"No, no. Go rest and eat. I can do this by myself." She would give a tired smile in response. "Just make sure to clean this blood up. You know how much I hate messes."

They weren't in the slightest bothered that she was dragging along Jesus's body.

They knew where his body was going and what it would be used for.

"Commander!" Dante called out as Maiya approached the stairs to the lab.

"Dante, yeah, I'm going to need help."

"Who the hell is this?" Dante inquired as they carefully lifted the body.

"I'm not sure. He just snuck in and we started fighting. He really did a number on me."

"That explains the cut on your hand. And the bruises in general. Commander, you have to be more careful. I swear, you fight so recklessly."

"Well, it's a good thing I have you here then! You're always there to fix me up," She laughed, immediately causing her to wince.

"I'm surprised you killed all those women. I thought you'd let some of them turn," Dante observed.

"I should have left some alive actually," Maiya sighed as they finally reached the lab.

"What? Why?" Dante looked at the woman in confusion as they hoisted the body onto an operating table.

"We need fresh meat."


	30. 서른 Humanization

"I don't think we get to save people anymore."

~Carol Peletier

 _Bang, bang, bang._

"Can someone please turn on some music?" Someone suggested.

"Yo, turn that shit off!" A voice shouted as a vintage song started to play loudly.

"What? Absolutely not!" Another voice shouted, turning it up louder. "I want a cheerful song if we're going to do this."

 _Bang, bang, bang._

"Now this is real music!" Someone else had changed the music to punk rock.

"Ah, how I miss the early 2000's. When music was good."

"When there was actually music," Someone retorted, causing several people to laugh.

 _Bang, bang, bang._

"We could always start a band in the meantime."

"Screw you guys. If you're going to put rock, put on some actual rock." The song shifted once again.

"Of course, the Brit would say that." This earned chuckles around the room.

"Don't even think about putting Easy Street on." This caused several groans around the room.

"Guys, stop messing around. Let's just get this over with."

 _Bang, bang, bang._

"Why are we even doing this? We already know that this will all be over once those cadavers decompose. And going off the data we have, that will be pretty soon."

"And the embalmment chemicals I made for the cadaver in the tank prevented it from succumbing wholly to decomposition."

"Plus I checked the reservoir where we trapped that massive heard... Hundreds of them can no longer stand. They're already at the advanced decay stage."

"And with spring coming soon..."

"It's only a matter of time. Their brains stems should be decompos-"

"Yeah, I know. We've studied their brains before."

"Then why are we doing this?!"

 _Bang, bang, bang._

"Because none of that matters if people can still turn!" Dante exclaimed as he pulled open the steel mortuary compartment. "It's not so much about finding a 'cure' than it is about finding a vaccine. And like Commander Rhee suggested, we have never studied a living human."

A screaming and naked Jesus was revealed to be the source of the noise. His hair had been shaven off, revealing stitches on where Maiya had smashed his head. He immediately jumped up, but the team of medics and scientists quickly restrained him back down. He desperately tried to fight back, but the syringe injected into his arm quickly sedated him.

"Things were getting pretty boring anyway," Cora stated, pulling the syringe out and tossing it in a biohazard bin.

"And if things go wrong, we'll have some legs for Jeffrey," Lillith laughed as did the others.

The medical team lifted Jesus onto the operating table while the science crew started to adjust the equipment, charging up their AED defibrillator and ECT machine.

Once they finished strapping Jesus onto the table and gagging him, Dante spoke into a recorder.

"Patient One is our first living human subject. We will first put him under duress to see how much his body can handle before we start injecting chemicals into his bloodstream. Finally, we will examine his brain and inject various substances to see what can prevent decay."

Once he finished, he placed the recorder next to a bloodied walkie talkie that was trying to receive an incoming message. He changed the music to an upbeat Spanish one, causing the others to boo.

"I'm the one in charge, so it's only fair I'm in control of the music," Dante smirked, before pulling on his black hazmat mask.

The others followed suit, making their appearance even more grisly. Their eyes now were black, soulless orbs, mirroring the horror of plague doctors.

And with that, they moved in on the helpless Jesus and started their task.

Cindy didn't go back to Alexandria. There was nothing left for her there.

Instead, she made the trek back to the Hilltop later that night when she knew Jesus was not coming back out.

The last remaining place where some Oceanside women reside.

She arrived in the morning; crying, tired, and dirty. She looked like she belonged to the undead.

And she wished she did.

It seemed every time she stood at these gates, there were less and less of her people with her.

The gates opened and the last of the Oceanside women rushed to her, followed by Sasha and Abraham.

Ezekiel had left the previous night, but promised to return soon since he wanted updates on what happened to Jesus and this new group.

Cindy immediately broke down when she was embraced by her fellow women. Sasha had no words to say as did Abraham. They could only embrace her as well because no "I'm sorry" could fix this.

"Jesus... He's dead, isn't he?" Sasha's voice was barely above a whisper.

"I don't know for sure. But the gates closed and he never came out." Cindy had finally stopped crying and was able to speak coherently. "I'm sorry I left."

"No, no. I told him to bring you back here," Sasha said in-between sobs. Abraham quickly pulled Sasha into a hug, but she pushed him away. She didn't need to be comforted, she needed to talk to Cindy.

"Cindy, when you're ready to talk. I would like to know exactly what happened," Sasha responded, her voice shaking terribly.

"What happened..." Cindy stated distantly. "I tried to convince them not to go. But they wanted Glenn. They wanted to make him feel the same pain we felt. They threw bombs at the castle. They wanted to see it burn. I tried to convince them..."

"These people- How advanced were they?" Abraham asked, trying to get a sense of who this threat was.

Cindy looked at the redheaded man with a blank expression as she said, "They were able to put out the fire. Their castle- it's unlike anything I have ever seen. It's guarded by a wall. When they-" Cindy took a deep breath in. "When they shot at them, they did it from the towers. It was all over in seconds. The spotlights were turned on and-" She started sobbing again and was unable to finish her story.

"That's enough, Cindy. You don't have to say anymore," Michelle wrapped an arm around the young woman's shoulders. "You get what happened. Your people- You all dragged us into a mess we never wanted to be a part of! You won your war so I hope you're happy now!"

The women parted, going back to their houses with a grieving Cindy.

Sasha cast her head downwards in shame, clenching her fists as she did so.

"It's not your fault, Sasha," Abraham said from behind her. "None of this was. It's just what happens after a war. Sometimes you never leave the battlefield."

"Abe, go back to Alexandria."

"Sas-"

"Go. See if Rick's returned. If he has, send him. If not-" Sasha stopped, feeling like she was going to vomit from what she was thinking.

"If not what?" Abraham questioned gravely.

"I'm going to wait for Ezekiel. He should be here soon."

The thoughts of war and bloodshed that had crossed her mind were so brief it was as if they were not there at all.

But they were powerful enough to ensure they were.

The gentle caress of someone's hand on his sent Jeffrey's eye fluttering open.

At first, he thought it was his brother or nephew, but then he saw Maiya sitting on a chair beside his bed.

She was looking at the window, he could still see her warm smile from his angle.

Realizing she was still holding his hand, he felt his face grow warm and he quickly let go.

"Mai-Commander! I'm sorry!" He apologized, unable to look her in the eyes. "I didn't mean to grab your hand in my sleep."

"You didn't. I did," She laughed at his now bright red cheeks.

"Oh," He responded weakly.

"Your brother and nephew went to go get breakfast. I can go get-"

"No!" He practically shouted, realizing how cringey he was acting. "Er, no. It's- It's cool."

"How are you feeling?" She leaned in closer. "Can you feel your legs?"

"Uh, yeah." When Maiya brought this up, the pain suddenly hit him. "Oh, man. They're really hurti-" He groaned at the excruciating pain that seared through his legs as he tried to get up.

"What are you doing? Lie back down. I can go get Dante. You're probably going to need a wheelchair and-"

"You're okay, right?" Jeffrey interrupted.

"...Yeah, I'm not the one who took a trident to the legs! Jeff, what kind of a question is that?" Maiya looked at him incredulously.

"I saw the bandage on your hand," He pointed to her cut.

"Oh," She examined it. "Yeah, just cut myself during a fight. Some guy tried to sneak in here."

Jeffrey opened his mouth to ask what happened, but Rick and Carl suddenly entered the room. Their faces instantly lit up at the sight of Jeffrey awake, pushing past Maiya like she wasn't even present.

Jeffrey pulled his nephew into a tight hug, laughing as he did so. Even Carl broke his usual teenage angst at this, joining in the laughter.

"Jeff," Rick knelt down to be eye-level with his brother. "I honestly want to be upset with what you did. You shouldn't hav-"

"Richie, stop. I get it. I'm an idiot for what I did. I get that I might not walk again- I heard. You're the one who taught me that's what family does for one another," Jeffrey explained earnestly. "Isn't it?"

Maiya shifted her eyes to the side at his statement, remembering what Glenn had been prepared to do for her last night.

Deciding that she had no business being here, she exited the room as silently as possible.

Her business was with her brother; someone she had an intense desire to spend as much time with as possible.

Jesus' absence had troubled Sasha so much so that she was unable to keep still. She was pacing, fidgeting, and constantly looking out of her office window as each hour passed.

Her anxiety of what had happened to him- if he was even alive- was taking a heavy toll on her. The thoughts of sending her people to break into the castle and find him were swarming her mind more and more.

Just as the thoughts were becoming unbearable, she saw Ezekiel enter Hilltop from the corner of her eye. This time he was without Shiva.

She prepared herself, trying to fix her appearance so she looked less unstable. However, when he entered she knew by his reaction she looked like a mess.

"Sasha," He started, but the woman interjected before he could finish.

"I look better than I feel. Imagine that," She attempted at humor. "He never came back. Cindy returned though. She told me he wasn't able to get back out since the gates closed." She had to pause as the thoughts started to come back again. "The Oceanside women went over there and bombed the place. But these people- they're just too strong. They were able to extinguish the fire and- you know what happened afterwards."

"Unfortunately. What were these women thinking? Why did they do this?" Ezekiel asked as he took a seat across from Sasha.

"Revenge? They were still angry about what Glenn did to them. They wanted to do the same to his new home."

"They never stood a chance against this foe... I am surprised it did not go worse than a firing squad." Ezekiel lamented, leaning his hand against his head.

"Ezekiel, I've been having these thoughts about what to do. Like to attack them and just be done with these people. And I know that's a stupid decision. But not only that, I'm scared. I'm scared that this will never end. Like we're trapped in this endless hellscape where we will constantly be fighting someone eviler...someone more dangerous. And once we kill these new people, there will be someone else right around the corner."

"I understand how you feel perfectly, Sasha. When I found out about these people, my immediate thought was to rid this world of them. But mentally, even physically, I am exhausted. The Kingdom will not continue to fight wars when its resources are weakened. I suppose I am being hypocritical since I felt similar with The Saviors. But like you say, I am fearful. I am selfish."

Sasha nodded solemnly. "I can't do it anymore. I just want Jesus back. My mind is telling me to go fight for him, but it would break me."

"There might still be a chance he's alive. Rick, Carl, and I would daresay Glenn would never allow something to happen to him."

Sasha looked down at her walkie talkie, which she had given up on trying to use.

"We might not have to attack. We could just get in closer range..."

The empire his sister had essentially built never failed to impress him.

From one of the last monuments that stood of the old world to the edge of a burned and ruined Capitol, the members were going in carts to each museum and gallery collecting the different supplies and materials they needed.

Half of what was The National Mall belonged to Maiya Rhee and her people.

Glenn Rhee studied his reflection in The Moon Gate Gardens; a place he had instantly grown fond of since he was first introduced to it.

He realized he hadn't seen his reflection in a long time, knowing he wouldn't like what stared back at him.

However, what really startled him was how unrecognizable he looked.

This was the same man Maggie had fallen in love with? Why? _How?_

Before he could start questioning too deeply, someone had entered the gardens.

"Have I always looked this way? This frightening?" He asked, knowing already who it was by her footsteps.

"Frightening? My little brother _frightening_?" Maiya giggled at this question.

"Maiya, I'm being serious. How were you even able to recognize me?"

"Because I grew up with you? I don't know," Maiya shrugged at Glenn's frustration. "Well, what do you expect me to say?"

"Nevermind," He sighed.

"...Are you okay? After everything that happened yester-"

"I caused all of that. I led them to their destruction. I burned their treehouses, killed who knows how many women at this point, in who knows how many ways. With a bat, with fire, with poison. I singlehandedly did that," He finally revealed.

Maiya remained frozen, trying to see if he was kidding. When he continued staring down at the water, the truth finally hit her.

"W-Why?"

"Because I wanted to stay alive. And in a way, it thrilled me," The man concluded.

"I guess I would be a hypocrite if I was upset about this. Last night, when I saw those women dying I felt that same thrill," She answered, surprising Glenn with this information.

"But last night, for once, I didn't feel that. I felt..." Glenn trailed off, thinking about what was the correct word to use. " _Regret_."

"I know I have said I don't like fighting; it is futile. It costs more than it's worth. I do everything in my power to avoid it. But like last night, that couldn't have been avoided. Why waste a feeling of glory? After all the battles we lost, I get my kicks off any win."

"Crap, I forgot I needed to get Dante," Maiya suddenly remembered. "I got sidetracked when I started missing you."

Glenn was left staring at his reflection once again. But this time he was left to process his sister's words rather than his appearance.

"I thought Maiya and Dante would be back by now," Jeffrey groaned while clutching his legs.

"Where are all the medics?" Carl suddenly noticed the lack of any medics in the infirmary.

"Oh, uh, t-they're probably c-collecting supplies," He stuttered.

"They should be here for you though," Rick pointed out in an irritated tone.

"I-It's fine, Rick. They're probably just in the lab," He stated through gritted teeth, not realizing what he had just said.

"...There's a lab here?" Carl whipped his head around from exploring the locked medicine cabinets.

Jeffrey's face instantly paled at his mistake. "Um... No. I don't know why I said that." He quickly changed the subject. "Can you get me a wheelchair? I need to use the restroom."

"Jeff, you always stutter when you lie. We might have not seen each other in years, but you can't lie that easily to me," Rick frowned.

"C'mon, Rick. I really have to use the restroom!" Jeffrey pleaded.

"Then tell us about this lab. Your leader wasn't kind enough to show us that on the tour," Rick retorted.

"Yes, there's a lab! It's no big deal!" Jeffrey declared, getting antsy.

Carl had found a wheelchair tucked away and rolled it towards his uncle. "What's going on in that lab?"

Jeffrey pulled himself onto the chair with the assistance from his brother, shaking as he did so. "I don't know..."

"Then you wouldn't mind if I checked it out, right?" Carl asked smugly.

"Don't!" Jeffrey immediately felt overwhelming pain as he moved forward reflexively. He collapsed back onto his chair, biting his lip to keep from screaming.

"Carl, go to this lab and get a medic to unlock the cabinets. Jeff needs pain relievers," Rick ordered, clutching onto his brother's hand.

"Or we can just break the glass and get the medicine ourselves," Carl suggested with a shrug.

Rick's glare indicated that was not even an option.

After much persuading on Rick's part and sheer physical pain, Jeffrey finally told Carl where the lab was.

An eerie feeling was beginning to creep over him as he walked towards The West Wing. It was not very well lit in this part in the castle.

 _And there was that constant humming._

Carl had been through many tense ordeals before, but as he opened a door to a long and blue-lit stairwell dread started to overtake him.

He started downwards carefully, making his way towards the bottom that had a small patch of normal, white light.

Faint music could be heard as he inched closer. It sounded like some sort of party music you would dance to.

He thought about turning back because alarms were going off in his head. None of this was making sense. However, in the end, he had to know what exactly awaited him at the bottom of those stairs.

As he reached the final stairs, a nauseating wave of odor overwhelmed him, forcing him to double over and gag. He held onto the rail as he tried to cover his nostrils from this smell, but it was just too strong to cast out.

Carl's hand hurriedly pushed open the last door, letting the bright light wash over him.

Several people in ghastly masks stopped their task and turned towards the open door, where Carl stood frozen in horror.

The first thing he noticed was Jesus lying on an operating table with someone about to saw open his skull.

The second thing he noticed was Heath's body in the embalming tank.

And the final thing he noticed was that all these people were making their way towards this intruder.

Carl swiftly dodged to the right out one's grasp. He picked up one of the surgical blades off the table, arming himself with it.

The people were closing in on him with instruments of their own and Carl had raised his weapon, prepared to slash at whoever tried to touch him.

Suddenly, his arm was restrained from behind and forced to drop the blade. He was spun around to face an incredibly annoyed Maiya.

"You should have stayed with your father and uncle," She said through her surgical mask, tightening her grip on him even more as he struggled.

"Let him go," A gruff voice demanded from behind.

Instantly, Maiya released the boy, turning towards the doorway to see an enraged Rick and appalled Glenn. Then, she saw Rick's gun drawn on her.

"Rick, put the gun down," She stated gently.

"Sir, please. Put it away," Dante reasoned from beneath his mask. "You don't realize how dangerous that is here."

"Like what y'all doing isn't?" Rick's eyes blazed at the scene in front of him.

"Did you fail high school chemistry or something? You can't have firearms in a lab!" Lillith shouted. "Americans..."

"Enough, Rick," Glenn stepped into the room, putting himself between Rick's potential bullet and sister.

Slowly, Rick put his gun into his holster while never taking his eyes off Glenn's.

"You knew." It was more of an accusation than a question on Rick's part.

"I knew about Heath. But I didn't know about Jesus." At this, Glenn looked to his sister for an explanation.

"He snuck in here," She simply responded, stepping beside her brother. "It was only logical to think he had been apart of that attack. We didn't know who he was."

"And Heath?" Rick questioned furiously.

"We found him already bitten. He died and there wasn't going to be much we could for him," She remained unfazed.

"And you didn't think to tell me about either of them?!" Rick demanded. "To ask me who Jesus is?!"

"Right now, I have every right to believe you set up this attack. Somehow all of these people who break in here and try to attack us know you? What are the chances?" Maiya fired back.

"You know... I don't need a gun after all..." Rick grumbled before shoving all of the containers off the nearest shelve.

He was sent into a flying rage, kicking the nearby table over and letting its contents fall to the floor.

Rick grabbed a surgical mallet and started to smash the tank, getting some cracks onto the glass before he was subdued.

"Rick, just stop. Stop, you're embarrassing yourself," Glenn whispered to him, gesturing his head towards a stunned Carl.

Just as Rick was going to take another swing, a voice on the walkie talkie spoke.

"Jesus! Are you there? We're close by!"

Carl instantly made a dash for the radio, but Dante snatched it from the table just as his hand began to wrap around it.

"This is your last chance to call off an attack." A concerned Maiya told Rick as she was handed the walkie talkie.

"Don't screw up again. Don't get more people hurt," Glenn warned desperately.

"...Sasha. This is Rick. Jesus, Carl, and I are in the castle. Who do you mean by _we_?" Rick spoke into the device carefully.

"Rick?! Are you okay? It's just me and Ezekiel. Why? What's happened?"

"We're okay...Where are you?"

"We're in the forest close to the castle. We can see people leaving and entering."

"Maiya, just let them go home. You even said you don't want to fight," Glenn interjected before Rick could answer back.

"They can't leave soon enough," Maiya glared, gesturing for Rick to answer.

"We're leaving soon. Just wait outside okay? Don't try to enter or anything. We'll meet you outside the walls," Rick replied tensely.

"Those of you who aren't cleaning this mess can redress the man and let him go," Maiya ordered to her members. "And, Rick, the deal's off. So get the hell out of my castle."

Jeffrey was waiting for his brother and nephew in the infirmary. He was racked with anxiety when Carl went off alone to the lab, something Rick could sense.

His brother knew him too well. It was probably because he was a former sheriff and could read people.

On top of that, Glenn had come in to talk to his brother, and Jeffrey was forced to reveal where Rick had run off to.

"C'mon, Jeff, we're leaving," Rick called out, breaking Jeffrey from his musings.

"I think Jeffrey is old enough to decide that for himself," Maiya retorted, closely following behind Rick.

"He's coming back and that's final," Rick fumed.

Jeffrey wheeled himself closer to the approaching footsteps. "You're leaving?"

"This place isn't safe. These-These freaks are performing surgery and experiments on living people. Even on walkers." Rick entered, holding up an unconscious Jesus between him and Carl.

"I know. Well, not about that man. But that's why I was worried about Carl going alone. He would get scared..." Jeffrey cocked his head curiously.

To say Rick and Carl were taken back by this statement would be an understatement. They nearly dropped Jesus when they heard Jeffrey knew all along.

Jeffrey's eyes turned to Maiya and they softened. "Commander, I'm sorry. I forgot outside people weren't ready for this. It was a mistake and I just could never lie to my family."

"Jeffrey, it's fine. They never are ready for change," Maiya remarked before turning her attention to Rick. "Alexandria doesn't even have a medic. How do you expect to care for him?"

"We have Hilltop and The Kingdom," Rick challenged.

"Rick... I don't want to leave. Unless it's to Alexandria with you all. But I don't want to be placed somewhere I don't even know," Jeffrey protested.

"Jeff..." Rick started to plead, but Maiya interrupted.

"We will take care of him here. It would be in our best interests anyway."

"They can still visit right?" Jeffrey rolled closer to his brother.

Maiya paused, thinking this over. "Sure," She answered hesitantly. "As long as they stay out of our business and keep to your side of D.C."

"We'll see about that," Rick threatened lowly.

Maiya rolled her eyes at his pathetic threat. "Rick, we're not going to bother you. As long as you don't bother us. We aren't going to have you work for us or raid our supplies. We have more important things to accomplish than what's going on in Alexandria. Maybe if you all did the same, you wouldn't get yourself into these conflicts. You wouldn't be making all sorts of enemies."

Rick had no response to this, but to only glare daggers at the woman.

"I'm sorry, Rick. But when I can finally walk, I'll come to Alexandria for sure!" Jeffrey smiled as Maiya and her group started to escort Rick, Carl, and Jesus out.

Rick gave no answer to this, only walking out of the doors without a glance back. However, Carl glanced back and gave Jeffrey a disappointed stare.

They slowly stumbled to the open gates through the garden. Several times they had to pause and readjust themselves. But they trudged on nonetheless.

From under the shade of a tree, Glenn watched with his usual emotionless gaze.

Fortunately, Rick, Carl, and Jesus did not have to trek all the way back to Hilltop. Just as promised, Sasha and Ezekiel were waiting for them.

The relief Sasha felt when she saw Jesus nearly stopped Rick from telling her what he had endured.

But he did so anyway.

She completely shut down at this news. She said no more for the remainder of the way back to Hilltop, only staring out of the back window.

After they dropped off Sasha and Jesus off, they entered Alexandria to find a crowd of people waiting for them.

Rosita immediately hugged Rick as he stepped out of the car, surprising everyone around.

But this surprise quickly morphed into disgust and fear when Rick told them about what happened at The Castle.

"Sasha and I discussed how we want no part in another war," Ezekiel remembered. "We are weary. We feel as if this will be a never-ending cycle that will eventually consume us."

"Then are we supposed to ignore it?" Tara proclaimed.

"Their leader gave us that option. We ignore them and they ignore us. They aren't planning on hunting us or stealing or attacking if we don't do that first," Rick offered.

This caused some murmurs of skepticism and agreement around the crowd. But it wasn't until what Dwight suggested next did the crowd break out into a full-fledged argument.

"We could also..just leave."

"You're back here again?" Maiya stood by the moon gate, watching her brother stare off into the sunset.

"I noticed you left some galleries untouched. I thought you would have stripped every museum bare."

"I didn't have the heart to do it. What remains there, it's apart of us," She replied sadly, taking a few steps closer to her brother. "It's who we were."

"Why did you do it?" This question caused her to stop in her footsteps.

"...I remembered your comment about the CDC. About the virus being in all of us and we eventually turn into a monster. Looking back it was obvious, but we only worked on dead bodies. Not living and breathing humans, which is what we should have been studying," Maiya responded earnestly. "Not even the medics and scientists thought of that. I'm the one who had to suggest it."

Glenn shut his eyes at this, letting her reasoning flow through his brain. "Maybe you should just let humanity die. It's not worth saving."

"Why would I do that? When we're so close to saving it? I know how life was before, but now it can be different. _I know it can_." She was now standing directly behind him. "I'm sorry about what I did to your friend. Trust me, if I would have known, I wouldn't have. But I need you right now. We only want to do something to help."

Glenn smiled at this suggestion, but not because it entertained or appealed to him. No, it was because he realized what he had to do to keep the last family member he had in his life.

He turned to face her, with the same smile on his face, stating:

"If it means we stay together as a family, I'll do whatever it takes."

A/N: Credit to MatPat and Film Theory for their video "How The Walking Dead Will End!" It's a solid theory on how walkers are decomposing and I recommend checking it out.

Also, in the chapter "Plague" I changed the word _infection_ to _decomposition_ when Maiya explains why Heath is in the tank. It was a mistake on my part and I just wanted to let you all know about this change so there's no confusion.


	31. 서른하나 Torn Worlds

A/N: The beginning of this chapter will have a montage of scenes

"I used to feel sorry for kids that have to grow up now. In this. But I think I got it wrong. Growing up is getting used to the world. This is easier for them."

~Rick Grimes

"Hi, my name's Glenn," Glenn greeted himself in the overhead mirror.

"No, that's too upfront. Hello, I see you need help. No, just no. I sound creepy. How about-"

"My name's Glenn. I'm a friend. I'm from a community in D.C. A community that's a research facility dedicated to finding the cure for all this," Glenn smiled warmly to the various people he would encounter. "We have been able to take back half of the city."

The exhausted and filthy people would always brighten at this notion, which Glenn happily took note of.

"I'm a recruiter. We need more people to come join us. Would you be willing to?"

"Everything south of us is off limits. However, these areas," Maiya circled areas north and west of their location on a map. "We can scout."

"These would be the best places for any survivors anyway." Glenn took the map from her, studying it.

"Exactly. There are more resources in these parts than where Alexandria is." Maiya paused, looking at her brother.

"You look a lot healthier. And I like the new hairstyle," Maiya complimented.

"Thanks," Glenn absentmindedly brushed his hand through his slicked back hair.

"Whoa, this is amazing," The couple said as they entered the castle, relieved they had finally found a safe haven.

"I'm sure you must be starving," Glenn started leading the way. "We only have fruits and vegetables here, but beggars can't be choosers right?" He chuckled.

"Oh, that's fine," the couple laughed along with him, ignoring any sense of danger for food.

Everyone who entered the castle usually did.

"C'mon, Jeff, you can do it," Rick assured as he supported his brother upright.

Jeffrey gave a groan as he took heavy steps across the room

"Just focus on Judith," Carl held up his baby sister, who clapped her tiny hands.

He continued trudging forward, gritting his teeth in intense pain.

Finally, his legs gave out and he collapsed. But before he could hit the ground, Rick caught him.

"Good. You're making progress," Rick helped him back onto his wheelchair. Judith gave a squeal of happiness that even Carl couldn't help but smile at.

"I think she agrees," Jeffrey laughed as he rolled over to her.

As the couple was drugged and carted off into the lab, Glenn quickly turned away and put in some earplugs when the lab door was briefly opened.

He didn't even want to see a glimpse of what was happening in there nor did he want to hear the sounds being emitted.

"Subjects 10 and 11 have entered the lab and will be stored for future analysis," Dante spoke into the recorder.

While the couple was placed into the mortuary containers, the medics were subjecting other patients to electrocution and even dismemberment.

Though they had some form of anesthesia, these agents were not strong enough to numb out all the pain or consciousness.

So it was common for the patients to wake up, start screaming, and move around midway through their procedures.

"Interesting. When a limb is cut off, even if it decomposes, it does not move around," Lillith noted as Cora examined the severed hand.

"The subject is undergoing the highest voltage possible," Dante turned the dial up as the patient jolted in his chair.

"Blood got all over my mask!" Dillon cried out while the others laughed at him, ignoring the banging and wailing.

From outside, Rick's group were watching the castle with uneasy faces. A storm was starting to form above them, giving the dark castle an even more haunting look.

The only light coming from the castle was in the West Wing, which the group knew to be where the lab was from Rick.

Everything else was as dark as the night around them.

A lightning bolt struck, causing everyone to jump unintentionally from the sight.

This castle was a monstrosity, looming over the group like a creature waiting to devour them.

"C'mon, Rick. Let's go," Rosita urged as the rain started to fall.

"Our pigs have not recovered," Ezekiel sighed. "And it looks like the illness is spreading to the rest of our livestock."

"We're at a shortage for chickens and medical supplies," Sasha added, rubbing her temples.

"And after what Oceanside did, we've lost a lot of weapons," Rick scowled.

The three leaders stared at each other in silence, thinking that the only reason they decided to stay was that their communities were too rooted to just abandon.

But now, they were questioning if this had been the right decision.

And if they should have just done this from the beginning when Negan first appeared in their lives.

Glenn was more at ease than he had ever been at Alexandria. Over there, he was always on edge, not knowing what the next threat might appear.

Over there, life was all about survival to the next day. Over here, it was about survival until the next year. Maybe even the next decade.

For once, he knew what it felt like to be on the winning side.

So as he drove into the city in his new Dodge Charger, he gave a shout of excitement.

* * *

"I still think we could have fought those brats," Abraham huffed, walking beside Sasha in the Hilltop's garden.

"Most people were against another war. But if they don't keep to their word, then there won't be another choice," Sasha answered, tending to the crops.

"You know they won't. These people never do."

"Abraham, you're our top fighter here, but your shoulder is still recovering. You're too hurt to fight no matter how badly you want to," Sasha looked at him sternly.

Abraham was left speechless at this and instead changed the topic to cover his shame. "How is Jesus doin'?"

As if on cue, Jesus stepped out into the garden. There were dark circles under his eyes and he was deathly pale.

"He still doesn't talk." Sasha glanced down at the soil sorrowfully.

"How are you doing?" Abraham placed his hand gently on her shoulder.

"I just try to keep myself busy," Sasha turned her head; her teary eyes meeting Abraham's.

"Sasha, I know you might not think it, but you are what this place needs. You might've been placed here _because of a lie_ , but that doesn't make you any less worthy to lead," Abraham pointed out. "Now it's just a matter of what you choose to do."

"I never took you for being the philosophical type." Sasha regarded his profoundness with disbelief.

"Well, it surfaces every now and then," Abraham shrugged.

Sasha gave him a half-smile at this as she rose to her feet. She made her way over to Jesus, who was staring up at the clouds.

"Jesus," She stated, kneeling beside him. "Do you want to plant these seeds together?"

His dull blue eyes widened at this suggestion before he nodded his head eagerly.

Back in Alexandria, Rick was trying to establish a radio system between the three communities. This would allow for easier and quicker communication instead of people acting as messengers.

"I went by the castle again. I saw Glenn driving around. He- He came back with some people" Rosita harshly informed, standing outside the Grimes's garage.

Rick paused his work while Aaron kept working on the radio. "I see."

"Those people probably aren't coming back out..." Rosita trailed off.

"No, I don't think they are." Rick started getting back to work.

"And you're going to turn a blind eye to it?!" Rosita took several angry steps towards him.

"I know I used to say killing people was how we survived. But not anymore, that's too easy. We survive by having to work through this, by having to tolerate it. No one wants a war again so you need to stop going by their place. It'll only cause more problems," Rick ordered.

"It's not even a matter of if they'll attack, it's a matter of when," Rosita kicked a wrench, startling the men.

"I get that everyone's on edge. I get it. I am too. But right now, we need to be prepared in other ways. Their main goal is to revive humanity, then ours is too. In case they suddenly change that goal. They can't be the only ones prepared." Rick immediately stood up, facing her.

"And that focus needs to be on this radio?" Rosita raised her eyebrow.

"For now, yes," Rick paused. "Think you could give us a hand with it?"

"I could try, but Abraham's better at this stuff than I am." She sat beside Aaron, examining the device. "There looks to be some parts missing."

"Yeah, Dwight went out to get them," Aaron responded. "But in the meantime," He handed her pliers and electrical tape. "Those kids can't be the only smart ones in Virginia."

* * *

Glenn had returned to the castle empty-handed this day; there had been no survivors to retrieve.

So instead, he had been sent out on a run to retrieve some parts for the helicopter at the junkyard. If there would be scraps to fix a helicopter, it would be there.

Once he arrived, he carefully climbed out of the car, carrying a loaded gun at his side. He passed by several decomposing corpses, which only added to the horrendous smell.

He made his way towards a pile made up of metallic parts and scraps, figuring this would be the best place to find what he needed.

As he started digging through the heap, tossing aside useless parts and examining ones that might be handy, a noise from behind alerted him.

He quickly spun around with his gun raised, pointing it in the direction of the sound. He was about to call out to whatever was there, but before he could an irritated voice spoke:

"Relax, kid."

Dwight shuffled out from behind a pile of clothes, carrying a bag in his hand. His glare only deepened as he approached closer to Glenn.

"Dwight?" Glenn observed the man with confusion. "What are you doing here? And I'm not a kid, we're like almost the same age."

"I doubt that. And with the way you've been acting, it's hard to tell the difference," Dwight spat.

"Oh, because I left a place where I've only been betrayed, hurt, imprisoned, and pushed away?" Glenn frowned. "When you find the last shred of hope in this world, you will do anything to hold onto that. What's been taken from me... you could never understand."

"...What you've been through, was a reminder to me. It set me straight and I know better than anyone what shred of hope you're talking about. So don't give me that bullshit! You were that last shred of hope for me and Sherry!" Dwight shouted, barely able to control his frustration. "I had a choice, and you do too! I chose to make a better life for myself."

Glenn immediately dismissed him, going back to searching through the scrap pile. This angered Dwight even further, causing him to get in Glenn's face.

"I owe a lot to you. And I'll be damned if I just stand by and let this happen! I understand why you did what you did. But it doesn't make it any less wrong!" Dwight concluded, searching Glenn's face desperately.

"I can't just abandon my sister..." Glenn muttered.

"You're hopeless." Dwight shook his head disappointedly. "I can't believe I left the Saviors just so I can put up with some Negan wannabe."

Glenn's head suddenly snapped to the side, but Dwight was already leaving. He wanted to curse at him for even comparing him to that _monster,_ but the words never came to his mouth.

* * *

"Maiya, I think I'm much better at doing runs than I am at recruiting," Glenn informed, walking alongside his sister as she made her way towards the helicopter.

"You don't have to lie to me. Just tell me you'd rather do runs," Maiya stated indifferently.

"Oh, okay. Then yeah."

"Well, it's a good thing the scientists and I formulated a new plan during these past days." She looked down at her clipboard.

"A new plan?" He gulped as images of Terminus flooded his mind.

"Yes, one that will be long term. So you don't have to worry about recruiting. According to Dante, we already have enough test subjects... _for now."_

The helicopter roared to life as the rotors started to spin. Maiya held her clipboard tightly, thinking how if this went awry it would be bad for all of them.

Glenn was equally terrified, bracing himself against the wind the helicopter created. He didn't want to be this close in the danger zone in case it caught fire.

However, the helicopter was able to hover off the ground and fly around at low altitude to everyone's surprise and Maiya's excitement.

She beamed at the sight, and even Glenn couldn't help but smile along with her. He knew how important this was to her and he was glad it had worked out smoothly.

Once the helicopter landed, everyone rushed to their leader, encircling her. They hugged her tightly, praising her for all she had done.

"No, it was all on you guys!" Maiya clasped her hands eagerly. "I'm only grateful I could witness this moment."

"We are on our way to make history!" Anik shouted, causing the crowd to applaud.

"All those people who doubted us through our lives, if only they could see us now," Cora snickered.

"And not from the inside of our lab," Lillith laughed back.

"We're the true Saviors," Jeffrey pointed out. "We're history's survivors."

"Look at how far we've come," Dante raised his fist in the air, allowing the others to follow his lead.

Glenn could only watch from the side with his fist clenched at his side.

* * *

"Hilltop to Alexandria. Over," Rick repeated into the radio as an eager crowd gathered outside the garage.

"Alexandria, this is Hilltop. Over," Sasha's voice crackled back.

"Alexandria to The Kingdom. Over."

"Alexandria, The Kingdom has received your message! Finished!" Ezekiel's voice boomed.

"Alexandria to The Kingdom and Hilltop. Final check. Over," Rick stated for the last time.

"Hilltop to Alexandria. Final check received. Over."

"The Kingdom to Alexandria. Final check confirmed. Finished."

Rick grinned, turning to his group as they cheered and clapped at their small accomplishment.

It might have not been a huge win for the three communities, but it was still worth celebrating. Especially after all the losses they had taken.

But they couldn't celebrate for long as the reality of their situation hit shortly after. There were still issues with the weapons, livestock, and shortage of medicine that threatened the communities.

No radio or other achievements could overshadow that.

Michonne was the first to bring this up. "Rick, I think- I think we need to set up a trade with Maiya."

The garage was brought to a hushed silence. Everyone turned to look at the woman, which only strengthened her argument further.

"I don't mean to disrupt everyone's happiness, but we can't ignore it any longer. We have to start thinking practically."

"I had a feeling this would come up sooner or later. I was hoping later," Rick admitted reluctantly.

"These people are crazy. I doubt they would be of much help," Carl crossed his arms.

"Well, Jeffrey's there. He could be some sort of middleman." Rick went over to his radio. "But now's a better time than ever to use this. Let's see what Sasha and Ezekiel think."

* * *

Glenn stared absentmindedly at his journal. He couldn't bring himself to write any further in it, for each time he did he would start to tremble.

He had wanted to destroy it before, believing it to be a stupid task presently. He had meant to.

His hands suddenly grabbed onto the papers, intending to rip it in two. But the interruption of his sister stopped him.

"Glenn, c'mon. Dinner's ready."

"I'm not hungry," He responded monotonously.

"Um, okay. You can still come down there and grace us with your presence," She responded in a dramatic voice.

"Are we going to get stupidly drunk?" Glenn glanced at her with boredom.

Maiya snorted at this. "I doubt you've even had a drink in your life. And besides, I take you for a lightweight."

"Wanna bet?" Glenn rose out of his chair, facing her. "Your group is practically a frat house in the making."

"Okay, Glenn, what's this really about?" Maiya started to worry at how serious he sounded.

"We're celebrating, right? How can we not celebrate without some booze?" Glenn started to walk past her, but her arm pushed him back in place.

"You've been acting weird all day. So I don't know what- Hey, what's that!" She suddenly pointed to the journal.

"It's nothing important." He quickly tried to hide it from her, but she grabbed it from him.

"This is... your journey," She stated as she skimmed through its brief content.

"I told you it was nothing important."

"Are you kidding? This is a documented account of your life at the end of the world! You have to finish it. And when you do, keep it safe," She handed it back to him.

He said nothing, only looking at her somberly.

"C'mon, let's go eat," She grabbed his wrist, leading him to the dining room.

* * *

While in the dining room, Glenn tried to mask his uncertainty from the others. He laughed at their dark humor, he graciously ate the food, and to everyone's surprise, he even told some jokes of his own.

He seemed to fit right in with the rest of them.

"Okay, okay. I have something to say," Maiya announced, trying to stifle her laughter. "It was brought to my attention, _by my brother of all people,_ that we aren't living up to our reputation."

Everyone looked at each other in confusion before settling their eyes on Glenn. Even Glenn was perplexed at what Maiya was getting at.

"We are known as the apocalypse's frat house," She continued. "So for one night only, I will allow alcohol to be served. Of course, this means you all go straight to bed afterwards."

The youth yelled loudly, each whistling and praising Glenn for this idea. Glenn could only stare back at his sister in awe as she smirked at him knowingly.

"So... beer pong?" Jeffrey suggested innocently.

"No," Maiya instantly shot him down.

"Like I mentioned earlier, we cannot stop our goals at just the helicopter," Maiya moved on with another announcement after she ordered the chefs to bring out their stored alcohol. "So these past days, our scientists and I have drafted an idea to commit a mass walker extermination. Lillith, can you please explain the details?"

"Certainly. The reservoir where the herd is contained is rapidly decomposing. However, this could be like killing two birds with one stone. We set up a trap where this site can act as a continuous extermination site while bringing more survivors our way. As well as monsters," She replied confidently.

Glenn's stomach dropped as these words registered through his mind. He looked around at all the approving and assured faces, knowing his must have looked cynical.

He was so caught up in their reactions that he didn't notice everyone's glasses had been filled with alcohol and were now raised for a toast.

"I apologize for not having champagne glasses prepared. You know us millennials," She chuckled as did her people.

"Glenn, aren't you going to raise your glass?" Jeffrey whispered to him.

"Oh, r-right," He lifted up his glass.

At that moment, he wanted to desperately interrupt this ceremony and tell his sister that he had seen this plan before. Not only once, but twice.

One with good intentions and one with bad. Both times it had not worked out.

And now, it was a twisted combination of both.

A truly monstrous creation.

But the fear of breaking that promise he made to himself; of doing whatever it took to keep the last person on Earth who shared his blood alive and with him surfaced again.

"To the future of humanity!" Maiya exclaimed, ceasing him from his pondering.

"To the future of humanity!" Glenn chorused with the rest of the youth.


	32. 서른둘 Nocturna

"We're all infected. We all carry it."

~Dr. Jenner

The early morning sounds of nature contrasted with the tense confrontation that was taking place in front of The Castle.

From the outside of the gate, stood Rick, Carl, Ezekiel, and Sasha; carefully examining the structure in front of them.

The guards already had their weapons pointed down at them, but had been instructed not to attack on behalf of their leader, who was striding through the garden towards the gate.

Maiya narrowed her eyes at the sight of these people. She was distrustful about why they were here, but she was not fearful. She knew if something went wrong they would instantly be shot.

"Are you here to visit Jeffrey?" She called out, coming to stop at the edge of the gate.

"Nope. We're here to see you actually," Rick answered with a tense grin.

"Me? What for?" Maiya raised her eyebrow.

"We want to know if that deal is still on the table. We want to work out a trade," Rick gestured towards the guards. "We don't have any weapons."

"I believe that, but you'll still be searched. But tell me, Rick, are your people waiting nearby in case?" Maiya questioned.

"...They are. We've encountered traps before," Rick took a few steps closer to the gate. "But neither of us want another fight. That's why we just want to talk."

"You're fully aware of what we do here, and you want to talk? I think you can see why I'm skeptical," Maiya argued.

"I hate what you did to Jesus. I was firmly against this idea. But for my people, I need this to work out," Sasha stepped forward.

"We do not have to be friends. We do not even have to like each other. But we are all in the same vessel," Ezekiel mentioned.

Maiya nodded, listening to all of this. "Okay. I will hear what you have to say. Guards," She motioned for them to come down as she went to open the gate.

The four of them stepped into the garden, only to be met by guards who immediately started searching them. It was no sooner that once the guards started frisking them that the gate was shut again. There would be no means of escape. At least not easily.

Once they were cleared of hiding anything, Maiya appeared alongside her brother.

"Follow me to the Schemer Hall. This is where most of our meetings and briefings take place," Maiya motioned.

"This place is truly deserving of its name!" Ezekiel complimented.

"Yeah, this is where you should be," Sasha stated bitterly.

"I'm surprised you didn't bring any weapons," Glenn whispered to Rick.

"I wanted to. But they would be taken away anyway," He whispered back.

"Yeah. I just hope for you and everyone's else's sake you don't try anything..." Glenn sighed.

"It depends on your sister."

"No, it doesn't, Rick!" Glenn's voice rose, causing everyone to turn back and look at him.

"Glenn, this is as far as you go. I'll be fine from here," Maiya advised.

"I'll wait outside the door then." Glenn stood back as Maiya opened the door.

"To make this fair, the boy waits outside too," Maiya affirmed. "We don't want the scales to be too unbalanced, do we?"

For a second, Rick's brows furrowed at this request. "Alright. Carl, wait outside."

"I'm going to find Uncle Jeff then," Carl huffed as Ezekiel and Sasha stepped into the room.

"The last time I checked he was in the infirmary trying to use a cane," Glenn stated as Rick walked into the room. Carl merely ignored him, stalking off in that direction.

"Maiya, if anything goes wrong-" Glenn started to say, but was cut off by his sister.

"It won't. I will do everything to make sure it doesn't."

Then she shut the door, leaving Glenn alone with his thoughts.

"I have to admit you guys are pretty brave to come here. It seems like it would be too easy to just ambush you," Maiya put her hands on her hips. "And to be honest, I'm not sure if you were bluffing about your people being close by."

"We weren't," Sasha retorted with a glare. "And you're right. It seems like we just played right into your hands coming here. You have several advantages over us."

"Like I said earlier, you saw what we do here. And you just come over like no it's no big deal. Even though you have such loyal people that they would fight for you, aren't you scared?" Maiya inquired as she sat down at a table.

"We are. I won't deny that. We've even scouted just exactly how you're doing it." Rick took a seat as did the two other leaders. "Us being here doesn't make us any less disgusted and horrified. But we were willing to bet you wouldn't try and harm us because you're scared."

"Scared of what?" Now, Maiya was genuinely interested.

"Us," Rick stared her down.

"You three took down an enemy we couldn't even kill. I know better than to mess with someone like that," Maiya admitted. "That was a risky move to bet your lives on, to be honest. But unlike Negan, I don't underestimate people. I see you all don't either."

"Let's get down to business," Sasha interrupted. "I don't want to be here; I just want to get this over with as soon as possible."

"Okay, lay out what you want," Maiya insisted.

"What we _need_ are medical supplies," Sasha frowned. "As you know, Jesus is still recovering."

"The Kingdom's livestock is ill and needs medicine," Ezekiel stated.

"And we need those weapons you all took from Oceanside," Rick muttered. "I would ask for a medic, but I already know the answer to that."

"Smart decision," Maiya grinned.

"Oh, and most importantly, my brother," Rick demanded.

"...Fine," Maiya folded her arms. "But of course, you will have to help us too." Judging by the trio's expressions, she quickly added: "Obviously not with our experiments."

"What is it you need?" Sasha asked through gritted teeth.

"There is a reservoir nearby that holds hundreds of monsters. We plan to blow them up. We have made bombs before, but we need bomb experts for something this big. Also, we need animals of our own."

"Reservoir?" Rick looked at her curiously.

"Yeah, there was a whole herd of them months ago. But we were able to trap them in a dry reservoir. They're decaying and will eventually be gone, but might as well exterminate them right now. It will also bring in stray ones, acting as a trap," Maiya explained, trying to remember how Lillith phrased it.

Rick glanced down awkwardly as he heard this. Even Sasha shifted her eyes in his direction, sharing the same, embarrassed sentiment.

"Though I disagree with your views, I will assist your people," Ezekiel broke the uncomfortable silence.

"I will too," Rick stated lowly.

"Yeah, sure," Sasha sighed.

"This is what I like; progress. If only all leaders could be like this," Maiya grimaced, remembering the leaders of the old world. "So which community has the bomb experts?"

"Mine," Rick answered quickly.

"I don't know if he's a bomb expert, but he was in the military," Sasha suggested.

"Okay. For your help with the bombs, we will give you Jeffrey and the medicine," Maiya agreed.

"You will help us first," Rick commanded. "And that's final."

Maiya held back her laughter at this. "I don't think so. If you haven't noticed, you all are in desperate need. We could still carry on without your help. But your three communities are about to collapse."

"I believe my problem requires more urgency," Ezekiel suddenly uttered. "I would like to readjust this trade."

"Unless you send a bomb expert here I will not help you. It's an equivalent exchange. But if we can get this all done today, then we can start on our exchange tomorrow," Maiya remarked matter-of-factly.

"Alright," Ezekiel relented grudgingly.

"So are your bomb experts waiting outside?" Maiya grinned, rising from her chair.

"They are," Sasha smirked back.

"Well, then I don't know why you all are still sitting. From everyone here, you're the last people who have time to waste," Maiya stated as she turned on her heel.

On the other side of the door, Glenn had decided that his sister would be able to handle this herself and would only drive himself into paranoia if he stayed. So before she and the rest of the leaders emerged out of the room, he left.

If he knew anything about Rick and his friends, it was that they would be proactive about this meeting. With this in mind, he ventured into the garden towards the outside perimeter.

"Where are you going?" A guard called down to him as Glenn approached the gate.

"Do you know where their people are?" Glenn answered back with a question.

"We saw some movement from the buildings. But nothing really visible," The guard motioned.

"I want to go out," Glenn put his hand on the gate.

"Are you insane? No one is allowed to come in or out right now!"

"It's alright, Siddiq. We're all finished here," Maiya came up from behind with Rick, Sasha, and Ezekiel in tow.

"Did everything work out?" Glenn looked to his sister.

"Mmm hmm. Now Rick and Sasha just have to bring in their bomb experts, which will be taken to the explosion site," Maiya explained. "Ezekiel, before you leave, I will have my vet talk to you. You can tell her about whatever symptoms your livestock is having so she can start preparing."

"She's good," Ezekiel nodded impressively to Rick and Sasha.

While Siddiq opened the gate and Maiya went back inside her castle to get Cora, Rick, Sasha, and Glenn stepped out into the open. It didn't take long before the Alexandrians and Hilltop and Kingdom citizens to do the same.

"Is this everyone?" Glenn's jaw dropped at the incredibly low number of people who stepped out.

"We didn't want to risk bringing everyone here," Sasha lied. While there was some truth to this, not everyone wanted to come along.

"Oh..." Glenn trailed off, not sure if he should believe this.

"Where's your sister and her goons?" Abraham sneered at Glenn.

"She's talking to Ezekiel," Glenn challenged back.

"Easy now," Rick warned.

"Sorry to keep you all waiting," Maiya approached with her three chemists. "This is who you'll be working with. Lillith, Eveline, and Adrien."

"And this is Abraham and Rosita," Rick introduced.

"Okay, we already have the ingredients ready," Lillith explained to the irritated duo. "We can prepare the bombs at the site."

"Sure, let's just go," Rosita rolled her eyes, following the chemists to their vehicle.

"I don't think they should go alone," Rick stepped forward before Abraham and Rosita left.

"Rick, we're all going to eventually head over there," Maiya confirmed. "But if you're still unconvinced, then yeah. I'll send one of mine and you send one of yours."

"I'll go," Glenn volunteered.

"And so will I," Sherry spoke while Dwight immediately pulled her back.

"Sherry, what do you think you're doing?" Dwight demanded, trying to take her gun away.

"I'm trying to help," She responded firmly. "I can handle this, Dwight."

"Staying alive is enough. You're not goin-" Dwight was interrupted before he could finish his argument.

"Why are you doubting her now? She practically won us the battle at The Sanctuary," Glenn mocked.

"This tiny girl won you the war with Negan?" Maiya studied the woman. "Rick, your people never fail to impress me. That's all the reason to let her go."

Dwight glared at the siblings as he released Sherry. Everyone had been holding their breath at this tension; each one prepared to spring into action at the slightest provocation. Trying to diffuse the situation, Rick asked, "Do we head out and come back later or-"

"You and your people can just wait here. They estimated it should be finished by tonight. I can even give you another tour," Maiya's mouth turned upward into a smirk.

"Well, I'm glad we're leaving then," Abraham commented, walking off with Rosita.

While Glenn, Rosita, Abraham, and Sherry went to the reservoir site, only Rick, Sasha, and Carl remained at The Castle. Ezekiel and his people had left as did Rick's and Sasha's. Rick and Sasha both agreed they had no purpose being here any longer. The more people that remained in this unfamiliar territory, the more likely conflict could occur.

However, one of the goals of this meeting was to build trust between the communities. Though they had to take precautions, trust wouldn't be built if their people were constantly on guard.

Even Maiya recognized this as she offered Rick and Sasha something to eat.

"I know we haven't been off to a good start. What happened with Jesus- those women- I'm sorry about all that."

Sasha gave no response to the woman, only eyeing her cautiously. Rick, however, offered her an answer.

"We haven't had the best luck with other communities. So I'm sure you can see our reservations about trusting you."

"We both have reasons that separate us. But also similar interests that could unite us. We've had the same experience of trusting some psychotic clown. I've taken care of your brother and you've taken care of mine- for a while. Anyways, the point is as much as I may not like working with other communities, I know we have to. So instead of looking at what we do differently, we should look at what we share," Maiya clarified.

"Is that what you tell yourself? To help you sleep at night?" Sasha suddenly demanded.

"Everything I've done, or have given the orders to, have been for our survival and for humanity's survival. I have known cruelty and hatred in the old world and in this one. So yeah, why would I lose sleep over what I've done to benefit the new world?"

"I-I." Sasha was at a loss for words at this _justification._ She looked at Maiya incredulously, shaking her head in disbelief.

"Commander, how is everything going?" Jeffrey approached with a cane, holding onto his nephew tightly.

"Jeffrey!" Maiya beamed. "You-You can actually walk again?"

"Only short distances. Then I get tired," Jeffrey sighed as he came to rest.

"Jeff, that's great!" Rick exclaimed, helping his brother sit down.

"Yeah, I couldn't have done it without you guys though. You all helped me and took care of me so much these past weeks," Jeffrey smiled widely at the people around him.

"Well, tonight you will be going back with your brother," Maiya turned to Rick, offering her hand. "Rick, I hope we can come to a mutual understanding and respect of one another."

Sasha looked at Rick suspiciously as he shook her hand, stating, "I think we can make this work. If it does, we could build a network between our communities."

"I would like that," Maiya approved cheerfully.

To Rick, he was bewildered how this woman could seem so normal and welcoming while having a dangerous and possibly insane side to her. She wanted the same world Rick envisioned, but seemed _oblivious to_ how she was going about it. In fact, she was the antithesis of their former threat.

"I don't," Sasha scoffed.

"Sasha, you're just going to have to deal with your grudge against us. I was willing to overlook the attack and Rick's outburst in our lab. I even say this for my brother who was obsessed with revenge," Maiya reasoned. "And this comes from someone who was set on turning her people into an army to destroy Negan."

"Don't tell me how I should feel!" Sasha retaliated.

"You don't know what we've been through," Carl retorted. "So don't you even lecture us on how we should feel about _your_ mistakes."

"... Of course, I shouldn't police how you feel. But what I mean is that you have to at least try and work with us," Maiya quickly retracted, seeing her error.

"I'm sure it'll just take some time," Rick interjected.

"Well, we've got plenty of that," Maiya looked at the setting sun. "It's about time to head out. Let's see if these nerds are ready to blow up some monsters."

From a distance, Glenn and Sherry watched the team put together bombs around the large reservoir. A vast majority of the walkers were at the final stage of decomposition, but there were still some who could be a hazard. The 'bomb squad' not only had to be careful in making their bombs, but where they placed them. First, Abraham and Rosita and The Castle team would set up their bombs in the area they wanted, connecting them with a long stretch of wire. Then, The Castle team would make sure the bomb was correctly made and add an extra ingredient. This went on for hours since they had to be meticulous in the dangerous process.

"Why did you really come?" Glenn suddenly asked after staying silent for the whole time.

"I wanted to talk to you. Dwight told me about the garbage dump," Sherry replied, not taking her eyes off the reservoir.

"Oka-" Glenn started to say, but Sherry's hand shot out and slapped him.

"Everything that's happened- Practically everyone who gotten hurt since the battle at The Sanctuary has been because of you. Even before then, with Oceanside. You have killed so many people, Glenn. And got so many people killed. I have too, but what you've become... don't you see? This fear and anger you're spreading- it's just causing more death and violence."

Glenn was too stunned by her actions to process her words. He placed a hand to his stinging cheek, feeling the area where she had hit him.

"But maybe it wasn't all your fault," Sherry muttered to herself. "Maybe this began long before with Dwight and me and Daryl. And you were just another casualty."

Before Glenn had a chance to respond, two vehicles approached. Rick, Carl, and Sasha in one and Maiya and Jeffrey in another.

"I thought you would bring your whole motley crew!" Glenn called out to his sister.

"I wanted to. But then Dante advised me leaving the castle empty at night wouldn't be a good idea," Maiya answered back. "As much as everyone wanted to see this, he's right."

"Commander, we are ready whenever you are!" Lillith shouted from the opposite side of the reservoir.

"Is it dark enough yet?" Maiya cupped her hands over her mouth, projecting her voice.

"Why does it need to be dark?" Rick squinted his eyes, glancing up at the evening sky.

"Explosions look cooler in the dark," Jeffrey grinned from the grass from which he sat upon.

"Everyone, stand back!" Lillith warned, directed mostly to the Alexandrians. She exhaled slowly, before connecting the wires to set off the detonation.

Nothing happened.

"I told you we should have used the detonation wire!" Lillith huffed to her peers.

"But then we wouldn't have been able to add the-" Adrien started to argue, but Maiya's concern interrupted him.

"Lilly! What's wrong?" Maiya started making her way towards her group.

"Something went wrong! I think there might be a loose wire somewhere!" Lillith met her leader halfway around the reservoir. "I can go back in-"

"That's stupid. It could be any one of those bombs. Just leave it for the morning," Maiya interjected.

"We can examine them. We have the equipment," Eveline approached the pair with Adrien carrying their tools.

"Even though we did a final check, those newbies didn't seem very competent," Lillith pointed out.

While Maiya and her people debated about what to do, Rick started to grow uneasy about this whole situation.

"Should we just leave?" He asked, looking to his friends.

"Might as well. These tykes don't seem to know what they're doing," Abraham grumbled.

"Yeah... The more I think about it, this plan just seems so strange," Sasha hinted.

"Our people know what they're doing. Look, they're already going back out," Jeffrey gestured to the silhouettes going into the reservoir.

"Lillith," Maiya grabbed onto the woman's arm. "Be careful."

"Obviously," Lillith gave her a teasing smirk before going in.

Maiya, as did the others, watched tensely as the trio made their way to the first bomb. They quickly began their work since the last ray of sun had vanished and they were attracting the attention of walkers.

"We have to distract the monsters from them!" Maiya cried out, starting to make a lot of noise from where she stood.

"We're almost done!" Lillith exclaimed. "Lucky for us, it was this bomb. I don't know how we missed-"

A sudden burst of flame shot out, flinging itself onto Lillith and Eveline. Eveline fell to the ground, screaming as she tried to put out the flames. Adrien took off his shirt, swatting at Eveline's burning clothes. Lillith, who had gotten the brunt of the fire, was howling in agony. Her entire body was aflame, and since this was a chemical fire her hair and skin were beginning to melt away.

Maiya remained motionless at this horrific scene; her breathing becoming heavier and faster. One of her closest friend's face was melting in front of her. And her other friends were either being consumed by a walker or rendered unconscious.

It was no sooner than the moment her legs regained their function the bombs finally detonated.

And she was knocked back, staring up pathetically at a moonless sky.

Bright lights popped up above her, illuminating her dazed face for a brief second before they sprinkled down to Earth.

"That's right... the fireworks..." She numbly stated to herself.

"Maiya! Oh my God! Maiya!" Glenn carefully lifted her upper body up. She clutched onto him for support, bringing herself to her knees.

"What the-What the hell just happened?!" He yelled at her, but she offered no answer. Instead, she watched what was left of what lived in the reservoir burn with anguished tears.

"Maiya... What was this plan..." Glenn knelt down beside her.

"The bombs would kill the monsters and would shoot up fireworks as a flare... alerting anyone or anything this way. We had to get our patients somehow.." Her voice cracked as she explained weakly.

Glenn took her in his arms, comforting her as best as he could despite the atrocious explanation.

Rick's group slowly walked over to the siblings, just as horrified and shocked with what they witnessed.

"Maiya-" Rick began to plea.

"You fulfilled your end of the deal. Take Jeffrey and leave," She blurted out.

"Commander, I can't just leave right now!" Jeffrey sobbed.

"It's fine, Jeffrey. I have my brother. And now you have yours." Tears rolled down her cheeks as she said this.

Jeffrey opened his mouth to say something back, but a strangled cry was all that came out as he broke down.

Rick's people ultimately left one by one, each taking a glance back at the burning reservoir and the grieving Commander.

"Rick..." Maiya said breathlessly as he started to leave. "I'll send the medical supplies to Hilltop later."

"Don't worry about it right now. You have bigger things to deal with. I understand."

"Glenn, you know where Hilltop is right?" She questioned, ignoring Rick.

"Y-Yeah," Her brother finally released her from his embrace.

"That's good. Then you can deliver it," She struggled to get to her feet, but Glenn aided her.

"Come on. There's nothing left for us here," She tugged at her brother's arm.

Maiya closed her eyes once she got into the vehicle, seemingly drifting to sleep. Glenn started to drive off, taking one last look at the ashen place.

In the wing mirror, a figure stood with its back to the ash, lifting in its hand-

 _A baseball bat._

Glenn must have made a sound because Maiya's eyes opened quickly, asking him what was wrong.

"I-I thought I-I saw someone," He gasped.

"Who?"

"...Negan. Maiya, I used to see him before-before I ran into you. He-He was constantly watching and taunting and-"

"Glenn," She whispered. "He's dead. The dead are no longer a threat. Ghosts, spirits, monsters, they're not something you should fear anymore. This world- it belongs to the living now."

* * *

A/N: I know the description of how bombs are made and are detonated are probably way off- base. But I wasn't willing to be put on the FBI Watch List just to Google 'How to make a bomb.'


	33. 서른셋 Something to Fear

"Everything gets a return."

~Morgan Jones

In the days that passed after the tragedy at the reservoir, Maiya and her members wasted no time in mourning. Even though it had been a setback for them, they all came to an understanding that not all hope was lost. It just required some time and planning.

In fact, they turned their grief into work productivity. Their goals became even bigger than a cure; they extended to manufacturing and starting up a nuclear power plant.

Of course, the latter plans were just ideas on paper at this point. They had not even accomplished their first goal. But once they did, they would work non-stop to make these ideas a reality. Maiya would make sure of that. Her faith in her people was unwavering.

So while the medics continued the task their leader had given them, Maiya moved onto the next project: finding a manufacturing factory.

Yet at the same time, she did not forget about her deal with Alexandria and The Kingdom. She was relieved that they had not appeared at their gates demanding what they had been promised. This gave her time to think and prepare for their eventual meeting.

However, she knew this was a better time than ever to receive help. She sent her brother on behalf of The Castle to set up a date with Alexandria. He was probably the person they trusted the most, and even then that bar was set low.

She knew how dire the situation in The Kingdom was turning so their meeting would have to be soon. But The Castle's situation was turning dire as well. Their disaster had cost them dearly since they no longer had any chemists.

But unlike her brother, Maiya would not allow herself to be cornered and hopeless. She had enough of that in the old world as did her people. If they wanted to rebuild it, they would have to be one step ahead of whatever the world threw at them.

* * *

It was strange for Glenn to be back at the very walls he had escaped from. But as he entered through them, he felt a sense of nostalgia.

Especially since he remembered all his and Maggie's possessions remained here.

He took a deep breath in at this memory, not wanting to cry right now. The pain never got easier, not even over time.

"Hey, Glenn," Rick greeted from beside the gate.

"Hey," Glenn responded dully.

"What's that bag for?"

"Oh, it's for Jeffrey. Maiya sent it, saying that he forgot some of his stuff," Glenn handed it over.

"Tell her thank you. I'll be sure to give it to him," Rick rummaged through the contents. Inside, was a journal, some pictures, and some other knick-knacks.

"So.. how is everything over there?" Rick coughed.

"You know, pretty much the same. They're still working. That's all they ever do. But they don't talk much anymore," Glenn shrugged.

"What happened... I would have never wished that for anyone. Even them."

Glenn stayed quiet at this, not sure how to take this comment.

"Is your sister okay?"

"Yeah, that's kinda why I'm here. She wants to set up another trade. They're really hurting over there. Some of the gardens were destroyed and they don't have any animals. They don't have any chemists now either. She wants you to send some animals and show them how to care for them. She also needs help repairing the garden. Then, she'll give you your weapons and Ezekiel medicine for his livestock," Glenn explained.

"That can be arranged. Anything else?" Rick questioned.

"Oh, and their helicopter broke down. They need some help with that."

"Then, we need some more medicine."

"Alright. I'll ask her," Glenn sighed.

"So I'm guessing this needs to happen pretty soon?"

"Yeah, she's already talked to Ezekiel. You just need to figure out the day."

"She's talked to Ezekiel? She knows where The Kingdom is?" Rick asked confusedly.

"He actually came over. It turns out Shiva got sick and he needed some medicine for her. But he won't get it until you guys fulfill your end of the deal."

Rick paused at this, before saying, "I didn't know things were this serious. We can do this as soon as today. I'll radio in Ezekiel and Sasha. See if The Hilltop can help with the garden and helicopter."

"Thanks, man." Glenn started to leave.

"You look tired," Rick commented, causing Glenn to glance over his shoulder.

"Jeff hasn't been sleeping either. He's just been crying or alone in his room," Rick continued.

"Be there for him, Rick. He needs you," Glenn muttered, turning around and heading out the gate.

* * *

Clouds were beginning to gather in the sky, bringing forth wind and the promise of rain. Though no one knew what month or year it was, they knew the long winter was finally over. Early spring had arrived.

As he and his people pulled up to The Castle, Rick noted how they were fortunate to have the spring season to start growing and farming crops ahead of them. With the coming of a new season, a rebirth could be possible.

"It looks like Ezekiel is already here," Michonne pointed to The Kingdom's vehicles, breaking Rick from his thoughts.

"I wonder if Sasha and Abe are on their way," Rick wondered out loud.

"I didn't think you all would come this soon," Maiya called down from atop the wall. "But I greatly appreciate it."

The gate suddenly opened loudly, allowing the group to enter. Once they did, they saw Ezekiel and his knights in the garden with Maiya's people.

"This is everyone?" Maiya asked, climbing down the steps from the wall.

"Everyone who could help. We couldn't just leave Alexandria unfortified," Rick answered. "But Sasha and Abraham should be coming soon."

"You can bring the animals over here," Maiya instructed to Carl, Sherry, and Dwight, leading them to the side.

Meanwhile, Rosita, Rick, Jeffrey, and Michonne walked over to the garden where Ezekiel was.

"Greetings, Alexandria!" Ezekiel welcomed eagerly.

"Hey, Ezekiel, looks like you guys pretty much have everything under control," Rick grinned.

"Well, these youth are as impressive as their garden. Despite its partial destruction, it is still fruitful."

"So then what do we need to do?" Rosita frowned.

"Okay, who can help with the animals?" questioned Dante, who was overseeing everything.

Rick, Michonne, and Jeffrey raised their hands.

"Jeffrey, then why are you here? You should be over with Maiya," Dante remarked.

"Oh, right, sorry," Jeffrey gave a sheepish grin.

"You want me to stay with you?" Rick grabbed Rosita's hand tenderly.

"No, it's fine. I can help with the helicopter," Rosita smiled back. Meanwhile, Jeffrey was watching the pair with an empty expression.

"Y'all have any cold ones to share?" Abraham loudly asked Siddiq at the gate.

"We don't drink here..." The man looked at him strangely. "At least not often."

"Are you shitting me?" Abraham started to argue, but Sasha convinced him to just let it go.

"It's alright, Abe. It's actually better not to be drinking right now," Sasha chuckled.

"Yeah, but the least they could do is offer us something to chug on," He barked. "Hey, Rick, where are you going?"

"Over to where the animals are," Rick responded. "I think Rosita might need your help with the helicopter."

"Alright. Sasha, you know how to repair things like this?"

"Nope. But I could always learn," Sasha grinned widely as they walked over to where Dante and Rosita were.

Maiya had already gathered a group of her own people to watch Sherry, Dwight, and Carl show them about raising livestock.

"Where's Glenn?" Rick looked around at the crowd.

"He went to go check out a factory for me." Maiya straightened up from her hunched position, turning to face the Alexandrian leader.

"What for?" Michonne eyed the woman curiously.

"Once we get this cure figured out, our next plan is to restart manufacturing." There were practically stars in Maiya's eyes when she said this.

"Isn't... that getting a little ahead of things?" Rick raised an eyebrow.

Maiya's eyes instantly darkened at this. "What do you mean?"

"Uh, I'm sure he didn't mean anything, Commander," Jeffrey quickly added.

"Excuse us, but we're trying to show these kids how to properly raise chickens," Dwight frowned.

"That's a sentence I never thought I'd hear," Michonne laughed, trying to ease the tension. It worked as the mood returned to its harmonious state all while the clouds grew darker in the horizon.

* * *

When Glenn was told that he would have to scout out a factory, his heart started to pound rapidly. The only factory he had known in the area was The Sanctuary, and he knew if stepped foot in that place again he'd vomit.

Thankfully, this was another factory he had been instructed to visit.

Yet, he had no idea why Maiya would send him to explore this place so late in the day and so suddenly. He thought she would want his help with this trade more than being here in this factory _alone._

Glenn carefully made his way around the outside, looking at the dreary exterior of the building. Smashed windows, rust, and peeling paint were what covered it. He could only imagine what the inside looked like.

He took a deep breath in before heading inside. Just as he imagined, it was even worse. But with The Castle's people, it could be cleaned up and restored to something useable.

Suddenly, he heard a scraping noise above him. He paused, listening to see if it continued. He wondered for a brief moment if he should check it out, but what good would come of that.

This place was only creeping him out and would probably feed into his hallucinations. He had finished his business here and quickly exited the building.

As he climbed into the car, he noticed dark clouds approaching in the distance. Glenn had been in the Virginia area long enough that storms here meant heavy rain and flooding.

With only the thought of returning to safety in mind, he drove off into the last remaining patch of blue sky.

* * *

After putting in a hard day's work, Rick and his friends were currently taking a break in the garden. They ate and drank graciously, watching the incoming clouds roll in over them. Maiya had offered them water and snacks in return for their labors. She had even gone as far to invite them for dinner, but Rick politely declined. All he wanted now were the weapons and medicine.

"Right. You've done more than enough for us, and it would be unfair to keep you waiting any longer," Maiya smiled.

"You need any help with the weapons?" Rick asked, already rising to his feet.

"Yeah, that would be great. Get some of your people to follow me," Maiya informed as her people tagged along with her. "And Ezekiel, you and your knights can come too," She addressed the king.

Rick gestured for Carl, Dwight and Abe to follow as Maiya and her people led the way to the armory. The Castle citizens put quite a bit of distance between themselves and Rick and Ezekiel's groups, whispering amongst themselves. As much as Rick wanted to hear what they were saying, he was just too far away.

"Maiya," He suddenly addressed her, causing her to turn around. "Something the matter?"

"Oh, no, Rick. I'm just telling Cora to get the medicine for Ezekiel and for your people," Maiya answered. Immediately, Cora broke from the group and went towards the castle's front doors. "Ezekiel, she'll be right back."

"Of course, there is no hurry," Ezekiel nodded understandingly.

It was not much further before they reached the armory. However, when they did Maiya paused; her back facing those behind her.

"I forgot the key," She chuckled to herself. "I must look like an idiot."

It was at the moment Rick cocked his head in confusion that approaching vehicles could be heard.

"Commander! They're here!" Siddiq shouted from the wall.

"Maiya, what is he talking about?" Rick cautioned.

She did not turn to face the man when he asked this, only placing her left arm at her side. This movement allowed Rick to see what was in her hand.

A key.

"It was here all along," She stated softly.

He never had the chance to ask her what that was about since the gate opened to reveal Cindy and the remaining Oceanside women. They entered the grounds with their heads held high and a determined look on their faces as everyone stared at the women in shock. Rick and the other men started to inch closer to hear what was going on.

"Cindy?" Sasha furrowed her eyebrows, even more confused than before. "What-What are you doing here?"

"I'm here for the trade. What else?" Cindy responded monotonously, walking closer to her.

"But- What? That-"

Sensing something was wrong, Rick had only begun to turn around when out of his peripheral vision Dwight slumped to the ground. From where he stood a few seconds ago, Maiya's right arm extended outwards with a stun gun clasped in her hand. She brought it back towards her face, raising the weapon in cruel triumph.

Rick had no time to process what just happened. His body only reacted in anger, lurching forward at the woman. However, he was knocked off his feet by Jerry, one of Ezekiel's knights.

By the time the other men realized what was going on, it was too late. They were met face-to-face with weapons drawn on them. Using the Oceanside women as a distraction, The Castle had quietly accessed the armory.

Nevertheless, Carl and Abe rushed towards the woman and her people. The youth coiled back in fear as the ginger reached them, shaking as they lifted their weapons in defense. Just as Abraham was about to swing his fist down at one of the young adults, a chain wrapped tightly around his neck, yanking him to the dirt.

All the while, Rick was still on his back, pinned down by Jerry. He could only writhe in agony and helplessness as he watched his people be taken down one by one.

Carl had naively tried to fight Maiya, finding himself ensnared in her grasp with a stun gun teasing his neck. He gave an angry cry, struggling to break free from the woman and use her weapon against her.

All the while, Rick remained on his back, now being pinned down by Jerry. Writhing in agony, he could only watch his people be taken down one by one.

Sherry, Michonne, and Rosita had all come running to help, defenseless and weaponless. This had been proved to be futile as they were blocked by the knights. The fight did not last long. Sherry was thrown to the ground roughly, getting knocked out instantly. Rosita and Michonne were able to dodge some of the hits, but they were ultimately overpowered by the knights as they had staffs and spears. When their bodies hit the ground, their arms were outstretched towards Rick and Carl as if they were still trying to reach them.

"Cindy... why?" Sasha cried at the scene unfolding in front of her. "These people- They were the ones who killed your grandmother and women. Not us!"

"I know. But you are the ones who started all this. My grandmother... she was a good leader. I can't bring her or my friends back. The closest thing I can do is lead Hilltop in her memory." Cindy glowered. "And to get _our_ weapons back."

Sasha gave a piercing scream filled with months of pain, rage, and anguish. She had finally snapped, jerking forward to strangle the girl. But before her hands could choke the girl's neck, Michelle's fist struck Sasha's cheek.

It only took another quick blow for Sasha to go down.

"How could you do this?!" Rick roared at an ashamed Ezekiel. "All these people- they trusted you! We saw you as a _friend!_ How could you be a part of this?!"

"Rick... things are more complicated than they appear. I need that medicine... and this was the only way for me to obtain it. My livestock- the well being of my people depend on this medicine," Ezekiel paused. "Shiva is very ill. I can't lose her... I'm sorry, Rick. I-I." For once, the king was rendered a rambling mess.

At this explanation, Rick could only gulp in deep breaths of air in rage. His fiery eyes flickered to Maiya's calm ones as he envisioned ripping her throat out.

"W-Why?" His deep voice shook in pure fury. "Because of what I did to your brother?"

"No. I was willing to overlook that. I was willing to overlook so much shit you all pulled," Maiya retorted. "But I wasn't going to overlook killing my people. You knew that."

"We didn't kill anyone! They died in an accident by their own hand!" Rick snarled.

"They were genius chemists who had never made a mistake before," Maiya hissed.

"Their arrogance made them stupid!" Rick shouted back.

"No, Rick," An exhausted Jeffrey panted as he finally reached the group with the Oceanside women. "Lilly knew what she was doing. They all did."

"Jeff... You too?" Rick's voice cracked as did his heart.

"They were my friends," Jeffrey muttered regretfully.

"And we're your family!" Carl seethed, making Jeffrey frown even more.

"Maiya, give it to me," Jeffrey addressed her. "Let me be the one to do it."

Unsure if he would use the stun gun against her, she hesitantly gave it to him. He clutched it firmly before pressing it down on his nephew's neck.

"Dad-" Carl twitched, before falling limp in Maiya's arms.

"CARL!"

With a surprising amount of strength, Rick managed to push Jerry and get to his feet. However, he was immediately knocked back down by Ezekiel.

"Don't make this any more difficult, Rick," He murmured, watching as Jerry pinned him down once more.

"You all are going to feel really stupid when you realize we didn't tamper with the bombs!" Rick scowled at everyone he could see.

"Then go ahead and ask the person who was there," Maiya gestured to Abraham, who was still struggling against Dante's chain.

"A-Abe... d-did you?" Rick begged, searching the man's eyes deeply for any answers.

Slowly, Abraham nodded his head in confirmation that he did, causing Rick's soul to instantly shatter.

Realizing just how far he had been betrayed, Rick's mouth opened to give an antagonizing howl that shook the heavens. From Ezekiel and his knights to Cindy and her women, they all turned their heads and grimaced at the painful wail. Even Jeffrey couldn't stand the sound, making his way towards his brother with the stun gun in order to silence him.

But Rick's scream had ceased, and with his last remaining consciousness, Rick lifelessly told the suffocating Abraham:

"You killed us all."

* * *

The sky above was finally leaden with overcast. The rain had begun to pour down below. Thunder cracked and lightning flashed, but no one remained to see. 

* * *

A/N: The story's not over yet, but I leave you with this while I go on hiatus. Once college is finished for the semester, I will return to finish the story.


	34. 서른넷 Something To Fight For

"I know it sucks and it's scary, but it's time to be brave."

~Tara Chambler

"They're still not back yet..." Aaron watched the sky darken ominously from atop the wall, tensing up as he heard the distant thunder.

"Should we be worried?" Tara asked beside him, eating a candy bar.

"I'm not sure..." He trailed off as a sense of unease came over him. "They should have been back hours ago."

"Maybe things just took longer. Maybe they're on their way back," Tara replied, trying to remain optimistic.

"I hope so," Aaron sighed, shifting on his feet. Meanwhile, Tara took the binoculars off from around her neck and brought them to her eyes.

"See anything?" Aaron glanced at the woman, but she shook her head.

"Nothing."

"I don't trust those people. I never have," Aaron suddenly stated.

"Well, that was random, but yeah. I agree." Tara finished eating her candy and crumpled the wrapped into her fist. "The way they run things reminds me of another place we encountered. Terminus."

"Back in Georgia?"

"Yeah. They had this radio system and everything. Signs advertising safety along the train tracks, leading us to a _sanctuary_. But what was at the end of those tracks was something far from that."

"What was there?" Aaron stared at her with anticipation.

"These people- They were cannibals." A haunted look came across Tara's eyes as she remembered a ghost of an ancient past.

"Oh my God... " Aaron's jaw dropped at this statement.

"I get that they're different, but that's what makes them scarier. Those cannibals- They knew what they were doing was wrong. But these kids, I'm not even sure they know. It's like they really believe they're doing something to help humanity."

Aaron remained silent for a moment, thinking over her words deeply. "I think that's exactly what makes them dangerous. Like Negan-," He practically spat out the name. "They both believe their actions are for the greater good."

A clap of thunder made them both startle, and grow even more anxious.

"I-I think something went wrong," Aaron stammered. "I don't know if it's a sixth sense or what, but something doesn't feel right. It's like a knot in my stomach, and I just know something went wrong!"

Before Tara could respond, Eric and Gabriel called out to them from below.

"Any sign of them?" Eric tilted his head back, looking up at his partner.

"No," Aaron murmured; his shoulders falling back in disappointment.

"It's going to start raining soon. The roads are going to be unsafe," Eric frowned.

"I know..." Aaron looked absolutely miserable.

"Do you think something happened?" Gabriel wondered.

"That's what we were just discussing. We're both getting bad vibes and these clouds aren't helping with that feeling," Tara answered, placing the binoculars back over her eyes.

"The radio," Aaron blurted out. "We can radio in The Kingdom and Hilltop and see if any of them made it back."

Before any of the others could agree or object to this idea, Aaron had already started climbing back down from the wall. He did not plan on waiting for anyone, not even Eric. He needed to know- He needed to confirm that his friends were in danger so he could start acting.

* * *

"Hilltop, this is Alexandria, over," Aaron spoke into the radio, struggling to keep himself from shaking.

"...This is Hilltop. Aaron is that you? Over." Aaron recognized the speaker's voice to be Jesus's.

"Who went to D.C.? Over." Aaron's hand continued shaking as he held the radio.

"Abraham and Sasha-"

"Have they returned?" Aaron interrupted, noticing that Eric, Tara, and Gabriel had followed him into Rick's garage.

"No." Jesus's voice sounded tired, not like his old self. "Oceanside just returned a few minutes ago."

"What? Where did they go? Were they with them?" Aaron felt his sense of dread expand upon hearing the name 'Oceanside,' though his conscious mind did not know the reason for this.

"No- I don't think so." Jesus sounded unsure of himself. "They had no reason for going there..."

"Shit." Aaron glanced back at his companions, all who wore a troubled expression. "Alexandria to Kingdom, have your people returned?"

No answer.

"Alexandria to Kingdom, have your people returned?" Aaron's patience was wearing thin.

Silence.

"Someone pick up, dammit! Have your people returned?!" Aaron shouted into the radio.

"Yes, Ezekiel and his knights have returned," someone spoke on the other end, much to everyone's surprise.

"Morgan is that you?" Aaron gripped the radio tightly. "Where's Ezekiel?"

"Yes, it's me. He is with Shiva at the moment." Morgan paused. "What's going on?"

"Rick and the others haven't returned. And neither have Sasha and Abraham," Aaron said desperately. "Get Ezekiel on the radio, and ask him what happened in D.C!"

"...Okay. I-I'll ask him what- where they are." Morgan hung up, leaving a painful silence in his absence.

* * *

Dante couldn't help but look at his commander skeptically as she answered his question about her plans.

"I plan to send twenty of them to draw the bridges and block the roads." She glanced at him, trying to see his eyes through his ghastly mask. "There will be about five snipers at the towers and a dozen more on the wall."

"Did you truly think this through?" His words came out laced with suspicion.

"Of course, I did," She gave him a wan smile. "No one will be coming here. If our people don't stop them, the rain will. Now, enough wasting time. You have work to do."

"Maiya, you honestly think they won't come for their leaders?" He gave an audible sigh.

"Well, if they do, we'll be ready for them. But _honestly_ , why should they even risk their lives for these leaders? All they've done is gotten their people killed and treated their lives as fodder. At least that's what Glenn's mentioned before," Maiya frowned suddenly. "Speaking of which, where is he? He should be back by now..."

"I'm sure he's on his way. He's probably just driving slow because of the rain-"

"Yeah, you're probably right." A worried look crossed her face as she stated this.

"Look, we'll get to work right away while you're away. And when you come back, Glenn will be here and we'll have our vengeance through knowledge," Dante reassured, placing his gloved hand on her shoulder.

"You're much braver than I am, Dante. Going through something like this- I could never do this. Probably why I wasn't cut out to be in the medical field," Maiya smiled. "I sometimes wonder why you weren't the leader here. You certainly had more of a connection to these people."

"I think that's exactly why. I had too much of a history with them. They needed a stranger; they needed a fresh beginning."

* * *

Ezekiel stood solemnly by a caged Shiva's side, stroking her fur gently. She looked up at him sadly, letting out a low moan.

"May this medicine stained with the blood of my friends cure you. May death pay for your life," Ezekiel gazed down upon the now-empty syringe.

Suddenly, the door to the theatre was thrown wide-opened, revealing a concerned Morgan. He ran in, yelling as he did so.

"Ezekiel! Where is Rick? I just got a message from Alexandria that-"

"He's probably dead by now." Ezekiel couldn't even look at the man as he told him this.

"W-What?" Morgan's frantic breathing had slowed to a shallow intake. The disbelief and heartbreak evident in his eyes.

"He's dead! They all are! And I killed them!" Ezekiel became hysterical, turning to face Morgan with a crazed grin.

"Ezekiel... What did you do? Tell me what you did!" Morgan roared, clenching his fists as he approached the king.

"I sold out my friends for medicine! For Shiva!" He pointed at the tiger. "For my livestock! For my people! Those kids told me I could only get the medicine if I helped them capture Rick and-"

"You coward!" Morgan lunged at the man, punching him in the face. "You weak, phony, damn, coward!"

Ezekiel made no attempt to fight back, believing he well deserved Morgan's fury. However, Shiva, with the little strength she had, was on her feet. She jumped at Morgan, clawing at the cage that separated them.

"I did what I had to do," Ezekiel's voice cracked. "I'm their-" He couldn't finish his sentence, breaking down instead. "I'm no king like you say. I am a fake, a sham, an imposter! I'm just some guy."

"Then be some guy who can make this right and be a hero." Morgan stared at the sobbing man sternly.

"I'm too weak- I don't think I can be that anymore. If I ever was," Ezekiel shook his head sadly. "I sold my soul to the devil."

"You got what you wanted with this-this Faustian bargain!" Morgan took a few steps closer, trying to drive his point home. "There's nothing preventing you from going back on this deal! Nothing preventing you from fixing this! Nothing except yourself!"

"You don't suppose it's too late for me then? Isn't a Judas one of the worst things to be?" Ezekiel wiped his reddened eyes and rubbed his swollen cheek.

"Of course not. I used to be a killer driven to insanity." Morgan paused again, breaking his now sympathetic gaze with the king.

"It's just a matter of wanting to and working towards it. There's still time."

"Then let us gather up our weapons. We shall fight for freedom and justice tonight! Morgan, radio Alexandria and tell them we are coming. But before we go, I want a moment with Shiva. In case, _we do not come back_."

Morgan nodded his head, seeing that Ezekiel had made up his mind. "It'll just be us two right?"

"Absolutely. No else needs to die because of me. I am only letting you come along because nothing I could do or say would stop you," Ezekiel chuckled softly.

"True, except maybe feeding me to Shiva," Morgan gestured towards the tiger. "And I'm sorry for hitting you. I-I overreacted."

"I would beg to differ. In my opinion, you _underreacted._ "

* * *

He had finally arrived back at The Castle.

But he felt no relief or joy when he saw its walls and structure. He felt only fear.

Glenn climbed out of the car, feeling the rain pour down on him. He had barely stepped outside and already he was drenched. He hurriedly walked towards the gate, trying to ignore the cold that ran through his veins.

That's when the guns started firing at him.

"What the fu-" He dodged behind the car as the bullets hit it.

"IT'S ME! GLENN!" He shouted, cupping his hands to his mouth. He raised his hands in the air, and slowly peeked over the car.

No bullets whirled past him; all was still with the exception of the rain above.

He hurriedly ran towards the gate, trying to ignore the cold that coursed through his veins and most importantly, avoid any potential bullets.

"OPEN UP!" He pounded his fist on the gate, shivering from the downpour.

"WE DON'T HAVE ORDERS TO!" Someone on top of the wall yelled back, but due to the water in his eyes, Glenn could not see them clearly.

"YOU KNOW WHO I AM! I'M MAIYA'S BROTHER! GLENN RHEE!" He was growing frustrated with their refusal to let him in, banging on the gate even harder.

"SHE LEFT NO SPECIFIC ORDER TO ALLOW YOU IN! JUST WAIT UNTIL SHE RETURNS! WE'RE ON STAND-BY RIGHT NOW!"

"STAND-BY?! FOR WHAT?!"

No response.

"Screw this then!" Glenn back away from the gate and went around to the side.

What he saw there made his blood run colder than any rainstorm.

 _Alexandria's and Hilltop's cars._

"They're still here?" Glenn asked himself doubtfully. He looked back up at the castle walls; his eyes narrowing with a fierce determination.

He began checking the cars, searching for something, _anything_ he could use to scale the walls. To his surprise, they were still unlocked.

It was a couple of cars later where he found the rope in the backseat. He began to tie a loop at one of the ends, ensuring it would be big enough to fit around the battlement of the wall. Giving it one last tug to test its strength, he stepped back into the rain and prepared for the climb.

Glenn panted tiredly, staring up at the immense wall above him. Swinging his arm with all his might, he nearly lost hold of the slippery rope. The rope went up into the air, hitting the wall and sliding back down to the ground.

Desperation was starting to set in as the rain continued soaking him. He tried throwing the rope up again.

Missed.

Again, this time offering up a silent and last-ditch prayer.

The loop fell over the battlement, catching onto the wall. Glenn couldn't help but give an eager smile, giving a resounding cheer. But that cheer would soon turn to soreness as he used all his upper arm strength to pull himself up.

He lost his footing several times because of the wetness, and his fingers were burning with redness. But he couldn't afford to fall back down, he had to push on. He had to push past his limits; past fatigue.

"I should have taken gym class more seriously," He grumbled to himself as he paused to catch his breath.

By the time his blistered hand clawed at the top of the wall, he nearly collapsed from exhaustion. He pulled himself up onto the wall, rolling over on his back and breathing heavily.

Then, he heard the approaching footsteps.

He groaned, sitting up to face the four guards. His scowl matching their displeasure.

"You can't be up here! Get off!" One put their boot on his rib, pressing down.

"Go ahead and try. But you know I have privileges here as Maiya's brother. SO WHERE IS SHE?!" He pushed their boot off of him roughly.

"She is not here at the moment. But when she returns, we will allow you in on her perm-"

"No, I'm staying right here," He growled, glaring up at his captors.

"No one is allowed in or out of the castle right now. Not even Commander Rhee's brother," The one seemingly in charge reached for their gun as an intimidation tactic.

"I know you're not going to shoot me." But he didn't give any of them a chance to respond, opting for shoving two of them off instead. He didn't wait to see what happened to them as he knew the other two would be distracted and he could escape.

He heard gunfire and shouts of surprise as he dived headfirst over the wall into The Castle grounds.

His body met the ground with a splat, and the thought of something sickening occurring made him panic.

But to his relief, he had just hit the mud; something he was sure wasn't on the outer part of the wall to break the guards' falls.

Glenn remained close to the ground, crawling through the mud towards the front door. He didn't hear any more gunfire, but didn't even think of getting up to run. He only hoped that the rain and camouflage of mud obscured the guards' vision as it did his.

It seemed to take hours to get to the door; each moment more painful than the last. But the pain was the last thing Glenn could focus on. The thought of crossing the threshold, finding his sister, and his friends.

He needed to know they were _safe._

That his intuition was _wrong._

When he was about a mere, few feet from the door, the gunfire started up again. He ditched the notion of crawling and made a mad dash for the entrance.

Tired, covered in mud, and wet, Glenn had made it into The Castle.

But there was no one in sight.

And his fear only increased in the strangely vacant building.

* * *

"King Ezekiel!" Jerry called out to a soaked Ezekiel and Morgan loaded up their truck with some weapons. "Where are you guys going?"

"To right our wrongs, Jerry!" Ezekiel barely acknowledged his knight as he finished his preparations.

"Then let me come too! I can bring my ax-"

"No, Jerry. This is our responsibility. Especially mine! Alexandria and Hilltop's blood is on my hands," Ezekiel ordered solemnly.

"Nah, it's all of ours," Jerry stated reassuringly. "We were just following orders."

"And I apologize for putting you up to that. As your leader, that was irresponsible," Ezekiel lamented.

"And as your knight, I'm telling you that you don't have to apologize. We're here to protect you. We promised to," Jerry smiled.

"We?" Ezekiel's eyes widened.

"We're your knights." Jerry pointed to the group of knights approaching from around the corner.

"No. I order you to stay behind. Protect the citizens. Protect yourselves!" Ezekiel cried out.

"Ezekiel's right. We- We probably won't be coming back from this," Morgan said bluntly.

"I know," Jerry simply stated. "And that's why I want to thank you." He looked at Ezekiel earnestly.

"For what?" Ezekiel was trying to hold back his tears as he saw Jerry and the other knights stand huddled together.

"For being a cool guy. And for being our king."

* * *

"Wait," Jerry suddenly put his hands up while Ezekiel was backing out. "We need some music to jam out to."

"Jerry," Ezekiel pursed his lips, turning towards his passenger. "Now is not the time."

"It makes things less depressing..." Jerry lowered his head disappointedly.

"Alright," Ezekiel sighed. "But I did not bring any CDs-"

"Don't worry, king. I got this," Jerry grinned, sticking a disc into the CD player.

With rock music blasting and their weapons in hand, Ezekiel, Morgan, and the Knights pulled out of The Kingdom for perhaps the final time and drove towards a stormy Alexandria. 

* * *

A/N: I should start advertising this story as The Walking Dead where Glenn, Abraham, Sasha, Shiva, and Carl are still alive...


	35. 서른다섯 Something To Die For

"You know what I was before all this? I was nobody. Nothing."

~Daryl Dixon

 _The freshman stood huddled in the corner of the locker room, crying and trying to stanch the blood flow from his broken nose. Around him were a dusty backpack and loose pages torn from the scattered textbooks._

 _He glanced down at his dirty clothes, seeing the splotches of red staining them. The boy groaned and painfully limped to the nearby sink, flinching as he looked into the mirror._

 _Dante's left eye was swollen shut, his nose twisted in an unnatural angle, and his lips bruised and bloody._

 _He gave another moan as he pressed a soaked paper towel to his eye, feeling the relief it gave him._

 _The sudden sound of whistling startled him, and Dante quickly threw away the paper towel into the trash. Unsure where to go, the boy hurried into a stall and shut the door quietly, sitting down on the toilet._

 _He was sure that they had come back to finish him off. He was foolish to believe he would get off so easily after what he pulled._

 _Dante pressed himself against the back of the wall, lifting up his legs so he wouldn't be seen. He closed his eye, sending up a quick prayer to St. Michael for protection._

 _The whistling stopped suddenly and a voice exclaimed:_

 _"Who the hell is bleeding in my locker room? If there's a girl in here-"_

 _Sneakers stood in front of the occupied stall as the voice continued shouting. "_ _This is a boy's locker room! I'm not gonna deal with your 'woman problems!'"_

 _Dante cowered back, trying to find his own voice to answer the impatient one._ _"I-It's not a girl," Dante blushed, clearing his throat. "It's just me. Dante."_

 _He got up and unlocked the door, pulling it back to come face-to-face with his gym coach: Mr. Negan._

 _"Did a bus hit you on the way over here?" Negan grinned, messing with the boy's scraggly hair. Dante did not find any humor in this, frowning as his puffy lips quivered._

 _"Hey, was the joke that bad? I'm sorry- Don't cry." Negan quickly apologized, leading the boy out of the stall._ _"What happened, kid?"_

 _"Cisco and his gang were messin' with me again, and I hit Cisco back with my textbook. He lost a tooth and-" Dante paused, gesturing to his face. "That's what happens when you fight back."_

 _"Well, I'm proud of ya' kid! You finally grew a pair and took a stand for yourself. You can't let people step all over you. You gotta show them who's in charge!" Negan sat Dante beside him on the locker room bench._

 _"Who's in charge..." Dante repeated, trying to understand what his teacher was telling him. "No. The next time they see me, they'll kill me. I shouldn't have done that..."_

 _"Then you fight back harder; you become stronger. You make them fear you. But with those noodle arms, you ain't goin' to be scaring anybody," Negan chuckled, lifting up Dante's tiny arm. "You need to bulk up. Start putting some effort in gym class instead of reading all the damn time."_

 _Dante shook his head stubbornly. "I've seen what that leads to. It killed my dad and landed my brother in prison. My life has just known violence because of that thinking."_

 _Negan looked quite annoyed at this statement, but continued on the subject. "You're a stubborn kid, but I bet I can break that iron will of yours. If you want to put those bullies in their place, I can show you. Just stop by around lunch 'cause I'm always here." Negan patted the boy's back gently._

 _"You don't hang out with the other teachers?" Dante's widened in astonishment._

 _For a brief second, Negan's eyes looked almost sad at this question. But just as quickly as this appeared, it was gone when he blinked._

 _"No. I got a reason to be with them. The kids' all come here anyway. I take out all the equipment and let them run wild."_

 _Dante rubbed his nose one last time, seeing that all the blood had dried. His eyes averted to the side where his shredded textbooks lay. He slowly got up and started to collect them off the floor, wincing as he did so._

 _"So, uh, you goin' to come?" Negan called out from where he sat. "Dante?"_

 _Dante apparently didn't hear him as his hand traced the cover of one textbook._

 _Anatomy and Physiology._

"Where else would I go?" Dante whispered dazedly as he stared down at the unconscious test subjects.

* * *

After looking through the second floor, Glenn had come to realize there were only two places he had not checked.

Technically three since he didn't go to the towers. But knowing that there were guards there, he knew to stay away.

But there was the infirmary and laboratory.

He rushed down the stairs when the thought crossed his mind, nearly falling down when his wet shoes met the wooden floor.

The rain had not only brought a sense of clumsiness, but loneliness and coldness. The thunder shook the whole building, making the old castle creak and groan. To Glenn, it seemed like it would collapse at any moment due to the heavy downpour.

This only made his search even more frantic.

Not surprisingly, the door to the infirmary was locked.

"Open up!" Glenn rapped his knuckles against the wood loudly. "I know someone's in there!"

He heard the scrape of a chair moving as he pressed his ear to the door, but nothing else was heard. Glenn started pounding his fists, hoping that the door would give way. He even tried kicking it down, failing miserably and using the last of his strength.

Glenn slid his back down against an adjacent wall as exhaustion finally overwhelmed him. Sleep beckoned to him, and there was nothing else to do but wait.

He already knew there would be no point in checking the laboratory.

* * *

Each test subject had been stripped of their clothing and was in the process of getting their hair shaven off.

This was just Phase I; just preparation.

Though it was not necessary, the male medics focused on the two male subjects while the female medics worked on the remaining four female ones.

However, when they were too move onto the actual experimentations there would be no such separation.

Dante had collected their clothing in a bin, which could be used later. Nothing could be idly wasted. Everything was precious here.

Well, mostly.

They had no need for hair, so that would be thrown out. In fact, Dante had already begun to sweep up the masses of hair, leaving the others to the shaving.

Once he finished, he had started preparing the buckets of water and soap so that the test subjects could be scrubbed down.

"Yo, Dante! We're ready!" Dillon announced, tugging his mask upwards to reveal his mouth.

Dante gave him a thumbs up as he carried the buckets over to the tables. He set them down a little too harshly, nearly spilling the water upon seeing the patients.

They looked _hideous._

They didn't even resemble humans to him. They just looked like ugly mannequins ready to be taken apart and reassembled.

Ignoring their unnatural appearance, Dante took a sponge and began to scrub the first one's body.

Dante could only recognize him by the burn mark on the side of his face.

* * *

Fierce wind and torrential rain swept across the pavement, obscuring Maiya's vision as she helped chop the tree down with an ax. Normally they would have used chainsaws as it would speed up the process immensely.

But with this stormy weather, it was too dangerous. It was too dark. Someone could end up losing a limb because of the limited vision.

Maiya gave one last swing of her ax, and the tree gradually began to fall. For a moment, it looked like the tree was going to fall in the opposite direction towards the gathered crowd.

They instinctively scattered, jumping back in a panic. But the tree suddenly shifted in the right direction, crashing down over the road.

"TIMBER!" A man named Mason shouted, raising his ax.

"You're supposed to yell that when the tree's falling, dumbass! Not when it's already fallen!" Another man named Alonzo retorted.

"Okay, we already parked some cars and trucks on the other roads. We just need to draw the bridge and cut a few more trees down," Maiya instructed, putting her ax to the side of her belt. "Let's get out of here before we're the ones who get stuck." She ordered as they all walked back to their respective vehicles.

"Commander, do you think they made it past us?" Her driver, Elsa, asked worriedly.

"With this rain?" Maiya snorted. "I don't think so."

"Maybe we should turn back then. Forget about the other roads," Elsa suggested as steered shakenly. "And go protect The Castle."

Maiya did not immediately answer to this, growing alarmingly silent. This was the second time today someone had questioned her authority.

That someone had doubted her.

"C-Commander?" Elsa nervously glanced at her leader.

"We'll see," Maiya muttered back irritably. "We are drawing that bridge though."

"Of course." Elsa nodded her head.

"But I do agree with you about The Castle. I would burn it down before I'd let _those people take_ it from us," Maiya sneered as she looked out the passenger window. "We will fight to our last breath to defend it."

* * *

Tara, Aaron, Eric, Gabriel, and Olivia all stared back in disbelief once Ezekiel had finished telling about what had occurred at The Castle.

"Y-You.. Y-You," Aaron seethed, gripping onto the radio tightly.

"How could you?!" Tara screamed as tears poured down her already wet cheeks.

"Ezekiel..." Gabriel lowered his head sadly. "Tell me this isn't true. This cannot be true!"

"It is the truth. All of it. As much as I am ashamed and guilt-ridden about my actions, it is the truth," Ezekiel sighed.

"I was as shocked and hurt as you. But we don't have time for this. The knights are already waiting in the cars. We need to get to D.C. as soon as possible," Morgan stated as he looked out of the garage. "This is a last-minute trip so take all the weapons you need."

The Alexandrians remained quiet, hesitating in their responses. They only glanced at one another with sullen and cold expressions.

"You know.. We'll probably die." Tara murmured.

Morgan nodded his head regrettably, unable to look at the others' eyes.

"A few months ago, I wouldn't have agreed to something like this. Because I was a stupid coward," Gabriel stepped forward. "Maybe I'm still stupid for doing this, but I know I'm no longer a coward." He gave a small smile to Morgan.

"They're our friends. They're _our family,_ " Aaron joined in. "We can't just sit here and do nothing."

"Wherever you go, Aaron. I'm going too," Eric reached for his hand, intertwining their fingers together.

"I'll stay here... Again," Olivia wiped her eyes. "I never imagined we would have to go through this again," Her voice cracked.

Everyone surrounded her, trying to comfort and reassure her they would return. Like last time. But how could they convince Olivia when they didn't even believe it themselves?

"If we do get killed, I hope Judith and the other kids will never have to know a world like this. I hope-" Tara started to cry. "Our sacrifices really do make a difference."

"I cannot tell you for certain what the outcome will be," Ezekiel cautioned. "But who would we be if we did not try?"

"Will it just be us going?" Gabriel questioned suddenly.

"Yes, I would rather it be that way. Unless you want to ask your people to come?" Ezekiel looked at the priest intensely.

"No, it will just be us," Aaron decided. "I don't want to risk more lives."

"What about Hilltop? Don't they deserve to know?" Eric mentioned.

"About that..." Ezekiel sighed again, recalling how Oceanside had also played a part in the betrayal. "I failed to mention how some of Hilltop, specifically the Oceanside women attacked too. I was only vaguely informed they would be there."

"I knew it," Aaron scowled as Tara gave a low sob.

"Do you know what they wanted?" Eric narrowed his eyes angrily.

"Weapons, I believe. I am not certain of what else," Ezekiel offered.

"I need to talk to Cindy." Tara's voice had grown horse.

"Tara-" Aaron started to say, but Tara cut him off harshly.

"If Ezekiel was able to change your mind, why shouldn't she?"

"She might not want to. She might be too far-" Morgan attempted to explain, yet once again Tara interrupted.

"Bullshit. I can convince her. I get that we need to keep this squad small, but we still need some more people. Especially people who caused all this!"

"Hilltop is the least likely place to help. Jesus probably wouldn't want to set foot near that place after what they did to him. Cindy saw half her people slaughtered there. She knows how indestructible that place is," Aaron insisted.

"Are you having second thoughts?" Morgan challenged.

"No! Of course not! I'm just trying to explain why they might not want to help!" Aaron defended.

"Aaron," Eric said gently. "It wouldn't hurt to ask, right? Maybe you're just underestimating them."

Aaron paused, staring at his fellow friends in deep thought. "Alright, I'll radio Jesus while the rest of you load the cars. In 10 minutes, I want everyone ready to leave. This storm is only worsening and we have no time to waste."

* * *

Only a light rain had fallen over the Hilltop since the storm had not yet reached it yet. Off in the distance, Cindy could see the clump of dark clouds where Alexandria resided. She sat on the porch of the main house, sharpening her trident with a stone.

While her hands were focused on the task in front of her, her mind was elsewhere. She remembered when Glenn had come over the night of the accident at the quarry with the medical supplies.

She remembered her eyes burning with a vengeance when she saw him step foot inside the walls, thinking she should just kill him and be done with it. Take this trident and impale his throat with it.

But something inside told her to wait; to be patient.

She would have her retribution.

Cindy vividly recalled while Glenn was busy talking to Sasha and Jesus, she snuck over to his truck and stowed away in the back. She hoped he wouldn't check because there was hardly anything to hide behind.

He didn't.

She recalled how during this drive, Cindy had a lot of time to think. She thought about what her grandmother would want her to do. If this was how she wanted Cindy to lead the dwindling number of her people. In Cindy's mind, she believed this was how she was supposed to lead. The naïve pacifist she once was had succumbed to all the violence and hate she had known for so long.

She recalled how it wasn't until early the next morning did she realize she had fallen asleep in the truck. Surprisingly, no one had found her.

She recalled how she was shivering; how she pushed open the cover and climbed out the back. Dawn had not even colored the sky, meaning she still had time to find the leader before everyone woke up.

She recalled how she didn't have to search long as she saw Maiya doing some exercises in the garden alone.

She recalled their conversation; how she tried to imitate an aura of bravado. She recalled how Maiya had immediately taken a stance of defense, and her expression was one of caution. Cindy recalled introducing herself, telling the woman who exactly she belonged to. She recalled Maiya justifying killing Cindy's people in defense of her brother and castle.

However, at the mention of Glenn, Cindy intensely recalls the feeling of bloodlust flowing through her icy veins and warming them.

Just as what's happening now while she goes through her memories.

Cindy's sharpening became more erratic as she reflected on what she wanted, which was for every single person involved with the deaths of her people killed. But she had to start from the bottom up, saving Glenn for last as he had been the catalyst. She would pit enemies against one another like pawns just as Glenn had done with Oceanside. She would let them do the work of killing each other until only she and Glenn were left.

Then, once the dust settled she would have Glenn's head atop her trident.

Cindy's eyes reflected the newly sharpened trident, recalling the deal she proposed.

"Whatever you want as long as I get the weapons that rightfully belong to Oceanside, and to be leader of Hilltop," She had told Maiya.

And what Maiya had wanted was for the people who killed her friends captured, experimented on, and ultimately killed.

Cindy's eyes suddenly darted to the gates, which were opening. Her eyes immediately darkened when she saw who was entering, losing the glossiness of remembrance.

"I can arrange that," She repeated as she put her trident to the side, standing up to greet the new arrivals. 

* * *

A/N: Here's a new update just in time for Christmas!

I would love to hear your thoughts, especially predictions or theories regarding the conclusion! I'd also love to hear any feedback!

(P.S. I hammered the "she recalled" lines because I didn't want to add more flashbacks! I already know how fans hate those on the show, and I'm trying to keep them to a minimum)


	36. 서른여섯 Bloodlines

"After I save the world, I still have to live with myself. I'm not leaving them behind."

~ Eugene Porter

 _What were ashes and what were snow flurries floating through the air, Abraham could not tell. Both particles landed on him, finding their way into his orange hair and sticking to his clothes. He paid no mind to either of them, walking instead among the ruins of The Sanctuary._

 _No one was in sight, not even any bodies._

 _It was only himself._

 _So he kept walking, his boots trampling loudly over the ice as he tried figuring out why he was here. What purpose did he have here? Hadn't he completed his mission at The Sanctuary months ago?_

 _These were the questions that crossed Abraham's mind as he put more and more distance between the factory and himself. It was then when the factory became part of the background that he became aware of someone watching him._

 _"Who's there?" Abraham demanded; his breath taking form in the cold air._

 _Footsteps from behind caused him to spin around quickly, glaring at the person who suddenly emerged._

 _But his gaze instantly softened once he saw who it was that was approaching him._

 _"Eugene?" Abraham choked. "But you're d-"_

 _"Deceased? I know." A perfectly normal-looking Eugene interrupted. Not at all resembling what Abraham had last seen of him._

 _"So I'm dead too?" Abraham took a few steps closer to the man, trying to see if he was indeed really here._

 _"Abraham, I may have been one of the most intelligent men alive but not even I can answer that for certain. Yet if that's the case, then the others must be deceased as well," Eugene answered._

 _"Bullshit!_ _I_ _don't_ _believe that!" Abraham shouted, getting in Eugene's personal space. However, Eugene seemed completely unfazed by this._

 _"What evidence do you have that they are still alive? Your conscience?" Eugene retorted, angering Abraham further._

 _"Shut up!" He grabbed Eugene by the collar, lifting him up off the ground. "You don't know shit, Eugene! You never have!"_

 _"Well, I must disagree. You're the one who doesn't know shit. Seeing how you got everyone captured because of your wounded ego. Because of your selfish pride," Eugene rasped._

 _"Wha-What in the hell are you goin' on about?!" Abraham shook the smaller man furiously. "Enough of these nonsense riddles and get to the point!"_

 _"The point is," Eugene untangled himself from Abraham's grasp, falling to the ground roughly. "If they are dead, it will be because of you."_

 _Abraham's fist collided_ _with_ _Eugene's cheek, knocking him down to the snow. Eugene merely got back up and dusted himself of the snow as if nothing had happened._

 _But Abraham stood shaking with rage; tears collecting in his despaired eyes._

 _"_ _Don't_ _lie to me, Eugene. Not again," Abraham warned._

 _"You are the only one lying here, Abraham. You've been lying to yourself since the moment you decided to tamper with the explosives," Eugene explained._

 _"I did that to make sure these brats wouldn't get what they wanted! I didn't know exactly what their little display was for, but I sure as hell knew it wasn't for altruistic reasons!" Abraham spat. "Like they claim their actions are for! It's all bullshit."_

 _"As is your explanation. Why did you really do it?" Eugene pressed on, never flinching as he said so._

 _"Because of what they did to Jesus. I saw how much it hurt Sasha. How helpless she felt; how she blamed herself!" The redhead shouted._

 _"And now, she might die for your actions. So will Rosita."_

 _Abraham paused, feeling his body becoming numb at this statement. "N-No."_

 _"However, that is not the whole truth. You can claim it was for vengeance, but all those months together gave me insight as to who you are," Eugene continued, studying how each word was like a stab wound for Abraham._

 _"You don't know shit about shit!" Abraham roared back at a still and silent Eugene._

 _"What I did, it was for all of-" Abraham started to argue before Eugene interrupted._

 _"It was for you."_

 _Abraham stared back in shock as these four simple words hung in the air; the howling of the wind the only sound between the men._

 _"You can't bullshit a bullshitter," Eugene smiled as Abraham broke down in front of him."It's easier to tell your secrets to a dead man, considering you already told some of them to Rosita."_

 _"_ _The last time- The last time I couldn't do anything. I was missing, and people died because of that._ _I had to do something before these tykes did." Abraham sank to the ground. "I couldn't let more people die again. I hated that feeling of relief, but I knew I couldn't remain a coward!"_

 _"The last time when you were with me you saved me. That's all I wanted. I wanted to save people. Protect them. If you could, why couldn't I?" Abraham murmured as he poured forth all his guilt and grief._

 _"I just wanted to be a hero."_

 _"But you are," Eugene assured sadly._

 _"I was. In the old world, I was known as a war hero. But now, who am I? Because I can't just be useless."_

 _Suddenly, Eugene vanished into the winter winds and the world before Abraham shifted into-_

A laboratory filled with the cries and screams of those people he risked his own life to protect.

* * *

Dante was leaning over Abraham when he came out of his deep slumber and into the living world, scribbling down notes furiously in his clipboard.

"Wnnnnnne," Abraham groaned incoherently, calling Dante's attention.

"Patient 60 has regained consciousness," Dante said into his tape recorder as he reached for the suture kit. Abraham merely looked back at the masked man groggily, blinking his eyes several times.

"Sorry, but we gotta ration our anesthetics. So for the rest of this procedure, you're going to feel everything." As Dante said this, Abraham tried moving his arms only to find they were bound with restraints. He furiously shook at his straps, seeing that his legs and torso were also tied down.

Dante merely watched, trying desperately to find some sort of humor in this situation. He remembered something that Negan told him. That bastard seemed to be constantly on Dante's mind as of late.

"Laughter makes the job easier," Dante repeated, recalling what Negan had told him when he confronted the man about his brutality. That seemed to have happened ages ago; his stint as a Savior a distant part of a past.

"It's how you cope."

Maybe that's why Negan had been invading his thoughts. Dante and the rest of his medics had been pretending to enjoy doing this; pretending to enjoy killing that the line where pretending was drawn had started to blur.

Something that Dante had learned upon that confrontation Negan never enjoyed.

Killing was something done out of necessity for him, something that seemed right at the time. This was why Dante let Negan live that day instead of killing him; instead of letting Maiya kill him.

Ultimately, Dante failed to find any humor before him. Sighing, he turned on the nearby radio and let himself get lost in the beat as he walked around the operation table.

"By the way, I wouldn't look down if I were you," Dante warned, seeing Abraham trying to crane his neck. Instantly, Abraham's eyes widened in horror as he caught a glimpse of what Dante warned about.

And what he was about to do.

Now it was Abraham's turn to scream as the needle went into his stomach.

* * *

In the other stations, the medics were much more successful in their attempts at laughter as they were able to crack jokes and make clever puns.

"I guess she's having a shockingly good time," Cora grinned down at a convulsing and screaming Rosita as 450 volts passed through her body.

She was moving around so violently that if she did not have the mouth guard she would have bitten off her tongue instantly. This continued for several minutes until her eyes started rolling into the back of her head, which is what shut off the ECT machine.

"There's practically smoke coming out of your brain," Cora frowned, watching Rosita stare ahead blankly. Cora slowly pulled the mouth guard out, causing some drool to fall down Rosita's chin.

She did not even notice as she continued blankly staring up at the ceiling.

Cora carted off an unresponsive Rosita back into the mortuary chamber, taking out a terrified Sherry in her place.

"This is for you." Cora shoved the same mouth guard used on Rosita into Sherry's mouth. "And so is this." She injected a large needle into the woman's arm, making the latter give a sharp cry in pain.

The shot knocked her into unconsciousness, allowing Cora to easily move the woman onto the operating table for more injections.

Each injection would cause her to twitch and bring her senses back from numbness. It was not until the 5th shot that she woke up screaming and pulling at her restraints in vain.

From the next station over, Dwight could only tearfully watch how his wife jerked back and forth as immense pain entered her body. He desperately tried to free one of his hands to reach her; just one hand to grab onto hers to comfort her.

"Look over here." Dillon turned Dwight's head, centering it so he could mark lines on where he would be cutting. "We've never had someone like you here, with a burn like this. I have to be extra careful with you," Dillon observed, drawing dark lines across Dwight's face.

Meanwhile, Dante had finished with Abraham and brought out his next subject. He gently placed a sleeping Michonne on the table, binding her arms and legs. As he prepared his operating stand with new tools, Michonne's eyes fluttered open and she lurched forward, freeing her right hand of its straps.

She hurriedly released her left hand just as Dante turned around. She took advantage of his disbelief and grabbed the scissors he held from him, holding them out defensively for protection.

"Just calm down," Dante reassured softly. "Give those back to me. You don't know what you're doing."

"I know exactly what I'm doing," She whispered, glancing at the other distracted medics.

"This mask protects me from those scissors," Dante took two steps backward, gripping onto his tray.

"But not your suit." Michonne drove the scissors into his hazmat suit, puncturing the fabric but not his flesh.

Dante jumped backward, knocking over the tray and falling beside the next operating table. The tools were sent flying through the air, scattering all over the floor when they landed.

Michonne wasted no time in cutting her remaining straps, but as she was about to get off the table she found herself to be surrounded by the other medics. She raised her hand, swinging at anyone within range.

"Stay back. Or I'll destroy your suits," Michonne threatened, glaring at the people in front of her. They remained still, watching her through their unreadable masks.

"Jeffrey's brother already tried this," Dante suddenly said from behind, injecting a syringe into her neck.

"What?" Michonne gasped as the needle entered her. "Carl-"

"He's safe," Dante confirmed, holding her as she succumbed to the injection. "Now, sleep. It'll be better this way."

She felt herself stop fighting, letting her body drift into a state that sounded so welcoming right now. As her eyelids closed, the sight of Dwight staring back at her was the last thing she saw.

"Did she cut you?" Cora asked worriedly as Dante placed Michonne back on the table.

"No. But this suit is ruined," He sighed, glancing down at the hole. "We have some spares right?"

"Yeah, like two," Cora replied.

"I'm going to go change, but can you all clean up?" Dante gestured to the floor. "Oh, and if you all can bring me a saw, a marker, and a scalpel, please?"

* * *

"I already know why you're here," Cindy greeted the group coldly as they entered through the gate.

"If you already know, then you really did set up Rick and allowed them to be captured?" Tara seethed.

"No." Cindy paused, seeing Tara's confused expression. "You forgot the part where we also attacked."

"Do you even feel anything?!" Tara shouted, stepping closer to the young woman.

"I feel anger and hate. But if you mean remorse, then no." Cindy's eyes narrowed at the surprised faces in front of her.

"Cindy, you have to let go of this-," Tara started to explain, but Morgan interjected his own opinion.

"We're on our way to the Castle, and if it's vengeance you seek then I will not stop you. But I will also not help you. No one will prevent you and your people from getting your vengeance. You have my word."

"Morgan!" Ezekiel exclaimed, turning to his friend. "When did we agree-"

"No one stopped Glenn from his vengeance. No one stopped me from mine. And no one should stop Cindy from hers. It's only fair," Morgan asserted.

"But that isn't the way-" Tara began to challenge, but Morgan's answer overpowered hers.

"No one stopped any of us. Did you all forget what happened at The Sanctuary? How we all did unspeakable things to The Saviors and no one objected to it? We all crossed lines we never thought we would. Even before that, I promised to never kill again." Morgan shook his head incredulously. "Look how far I've strayed from that."

"If my women go, we will kill both Rhee's. And no one will stop us," Cindy demanded.

"No one," Morgan swore as the others behind him glanced down uncertainly.

"This also makes you a traitor to both sides," Tara pointed out.

"I never promised I wouldn't ever attack Maiya. Just not at that moment," Cindy smirked as she turned around to gather her women.

* * *

The sounds of the front doors opening and the winds blowing in jolted Glenn awake followed by the sound of his sister's voice.

"Ah, what the hell has happened here?" Maiya cried to her subordinates. "One person dies when I leave for a few hours! And you don't know where my brother is?"

"Maiya!" Glenn shouted, running towards her from the infirmary.

"Glenn!" Maiya smiled as she held the other person Glenn had pushed off the wall. "Where have you been?"

"I've been in here!" Glenn glanced nervously at the injured person his sister supported.

"You're telling me he's been in here this entire time, and you never checked?" Maiya deadpanned to her guards.

"We-uh, we thought maybe we had shot him. But we also didn't want to leave our posts in case we saw you approaching or Alex-," The guard sheepishly answered before Maiya cut him off.

"You shot at my- I realize I never gave you commands to let him in, but shooting at him?!" Maiya roared. "Get back to your posts! Staying there was the smartest decision you all made! And for the ones who went with me, go to the wall and towers with them!"

Everyone quickly left the lobby, following their Commander's immediate instructions. Maiya grumbled, readjusting herself to carry her injured guard. She ignored her brother, moving past him towards the infirmary.

"Who's in there?" Glenn suddenly asked as he trailed behind his sister.

"...No one I need right now," She gestured to the guard.

"Then who do you need? The medics?" Glenn demanded as his sister knocked on the infirmary door. "Where are they?"

Maiya gave no response, knocking harder and louder this time.

"Are they in the lab?" Glenn crept closer to her.

"Open up! We have an injured guard out here!" Maiya hollered. Instantly, the door opened and Maiya practically shoved the guard inside and into the other person's arms. Who they were, Glenn didn't see since it all happened so fast. And when Glenn approached the door, Maiya blocked him.

"Glenn, listen to me." She shut the infirmary door. "Stay here while I get the medics."

"That other guard mentioned Alexandria. What's going on? Why would they be coming here? Why were their cars outside?" Glenn inquired, growing more frantic with each question.

"Just stay here!" Maiya growled as she ran in the opposite direction, leaving a stunned Glenn behind. He had never seen his sister this agitated before. Not even when he first arrived here and uncovered her secret.

Now, she looked several years older than she really was. She looked like a cornered animal that was about ready to bite.

 _She looked dangerous._

For a second, Glenn even believed she looked like she could kill him.

* * *

"I'm so, so, sorry, Cindy. For what I did to you. For what I made you into... this," Tara lamented as she drove.

"It's how the world is now. I had to grow up. It looks like you also need to," Cindy scowled. "No one can be a pacifist anymore."

"That's not true. Yeah, this world may be tougher. But- shit!" Tara suddenly slammed on the brakes. The car skidded to a halt right next to a large tree covering the road. From behind, other cars did the same, nearly causing a collision with one another.

"What the hell is this?!" Tara hopped out of the car to see what was going on. Already out of their car were Aaron and Eric, looking at the tree.

"It's just like last time with The Saviors," Aaron groaned.

"They're wanting to trap us?" Eric looked at the man, who was now shivering in the rain.

"I-I," Aaron stammered fearfully.

"Let's see if we can find another way then." Tara trudged back to her car through the dense water. She waved at the other cars to turn around before getting back inside.

"It's just going to get worse," Cindy stated, looking out the window.

"What?" Tara raised her eyebrows as she attempted to drive off. She pressed her foot on the gas pedal, but the car would not go. She tried again, but the car remained stuck.

"The rain. It's just going to get worse," Cindy clarified. "Thunderstorms like these always lead to flooding."

"Shit!" Tara realized as she opened the car door. Below, over four inches of water had already collected around the car. Tara looked behind and saw some of the other cars in the same situation.

The lucky ones had already driven off.

"We have to get out!" Tara blurted out.

"And go where? This water is rising fast!" Cindy had also opened her car door to see the water rapidly increasing.

"Exactly!"

"We'll get swept away!" Cindy exclaimed.

"Climb on top the car then!" Tara began to pull herself upwards. Once she stood on the roof, she went to Cindy's side to pull her up.

"I see Aaron and Eric over there, Tara pointed to the other car, trying to see through the heavy rain.

"Anyone else?" Cindy wiped away the water that had collected over her face.

"Mmm. Yeah! Another car is coming! It's Gabriel and Jesus!" Tara gestured wildly to them. They were already helping Aaron and Eric get into their vehicle, telling them to jump onto the roof instead of crossing the flooded road.

"We're going to have to jump over to Aaron's car then Jesus's," Tara panted. "You go first."

Cindy pursed her lips at the woman, tucking her body down as she ran towards the other car and pushed herself off. She hit the car roughly, but managed to cling on despite the slipperiness.

Tara inhaled deeply, sprinting forward and leaping into the air. Her hand caught onto the side of the car and the other one reached for Cindy's. The girl pulled Tara up with all her strength, both gasping once they were safe.

"I don't think I can do this again." Tara steadied herself against the wind and rain.

"We're going to have to. But they'll help us," Cindy pointed to the men waiting for them with outreached arms.

"Okay, you ready?"

Cindy nodded hesitantly before rushing forward off the car once again. Just like she said, the men caught her and pulled her to safety.

"This looks a lot further..." Tara whispered to herself. "On the count of three. 1... 2..." A sudden burst of courage sent Tara running. At the moment she was about to jump, her foot slipped and she tumbled down.

Tara gave a strangled cry as she fell headfirst into the water below. Already, the current was overpowering her and sweeping her away.

"Haaallg!" Tara took in a mouthful of water when she meant to cry out for help. The water went inside her lungs, robbing them of whatever oxygen she had.

Her arms splashed around frantically, searching for anything to latch onto. The current was getting stronger, the water colder, and her strength weaker.

But suddenly, her hand caught onto another and she was pulled from the watery depths. Tara gasped desperately for the fresh air as the hand's grip slowly began slipping.

"Tara!" Jesus was barely holding onto Aaron; the latter who was barely holding onto the car.

"J-Jesus!" Tara grabbed onto his wrist tightly with her other hand.

"I-I can't hold on," He gritted his teeth, feeling her hands sliding off his. "Pull yourself up!"

Tara opened her mouth to respond when thunder rumbled above, startling her. She lost her hold on Jesus and felt herself sinking back down, but Jesus caught her once again.

"Tara," Jesus calmly addressed her. "It'll be okay."

"N-No, don't let go!" Tara shouted just as Jesus swung her upwards with all his might. But by doing so, he let himself fall down.

Tara hit the car door painfully, but that wasn't what made her cry out. Nor was it Aaron's death grip on her wrist.

It was that Jesus never resurfaced again.

* * *

Maiya's stomps to the lab echoed her storming off from her brother. With her boots, it made the sounds even louder.

She only stopped stomping when she was halfway down the stairs, realizing she was about to enter this lab without any sort of protection.

Not even a surgical mask.

"Damn," She muttered, deciding she would get one from the lab.

"Maiya!" A voice called from above the stairs.

"I thought I told you to stay behind!" She sped up her walk.

"I just need to know! Please! Tell me they're not in there!" Glenn caught up to her and pressed her against the railing.

Maiya gave a low snarl as she shoved him back and continued downwards.

"Maiya!" He continued calling out to her.

"There's nothing down here for you!" She yelled, never once stopping to glance back. But when she finally reached the bottom, she did stop.

The door loomed in front of her like a giant void.

If she entered, she would never be able to come back out.

"Maiya... what's wrong?" Glenn paused beside her.

She swallowed, slowly pulling out her key. She did not want to get any closer as she could already hear what was happening on the other side.

"Are-Are you okay?" Glenn stuttered.

"Of course. I just never really go in here... When they're experimenting." Maiya's hand was drawn back to her chest.

"What?" Glenn was taken back by this statement.

"Glenn, please. Don't make me go in there! Afterwards, I'll be okay. But not during!" Maiya pleaded.

"Why... not..." Glenn whispered darkly.

Maiya only lowered her head, biting her lip in silence.

"Give that to me!" He snatched the key from her and stuck it into the lock.

"Glenn! Don't!" Maiya's head snapped up instantly.

"You're scared, aren't you?" Glenn questioned as he turned the key.

"Yes! But you were too!" Maiya reached her hand out for him, but Glenn had already pushed open the doors. "You never went in there either!"

"I was," Glenn remembered when he used to deliver patients here. "I wore earplugs and everything. I couldn't even bear to sneak a peek."

"But now," Glenn stated as light covered the both of them. "We have to face that there's nothing to fear."


	37. 서른일곱 The Final Hour

"It always starts with one person."

~ Father Gabriel Stokes

Glenn could barely stomach the sight that laid in front of his sickened and widened eyes.

His friends-

 _His family-_

Strapped to operating tables, being pricked and prodded on.

Sasha being injected and drained of her blood.

Michonne being mutilated and dissected.

Dwight being marked and sliced.

The others, like Sherry, Abraham, Rick, Carl, and Rosita, were hidden from view, and the mere thought of what might have happened to them angered Glenn even more.

"I didn't want to believe it..." Glenn started quietly. "I thought- I wanted to believe not even you would cross this line."

"They-They killed our people, Glenn! I didn't want to do this either. I said that many times before, but they kept attacking! They hurt you! They destroyed our garden! They-" Maiya defended loudly, causing the medics to suddenly turn and stop their grisly work.

Glenn let out a maniacal laugh at his sister's justification, interrupting her. "What was that you told me? Awhile back? _I'm sorry about what I did to your friend. Trust me, if I would have known, I wouldn't have!"_ He spat, walking over gradually to the stations to examine his friends.

"Or was it that _you have become selfish?!"_ Glenn pulled back Dillon roughly from Dwight. "I call bullshit like you did when I first walked into this damned lab! How did you think I'd react?! Is that why you sent me away?! Because you knew!"

"I-I sent you because Oceanside was coming- They had made a deal with me- And I didn't know how they'd react if they saw you!" Maiya struggled to say as she approached her brother desperately. "But yes! I knew you would try and stop us from-"

"From torturing my friends?!" Glenn went to the next station and shoved Cora. "For someone who enjoys killing, you can't even look at what you're part of!" He turned back to sister and grabbed her hand, tugging her to the patients.

"LOOK HERE! LOOK AT WHAT YOU'RE A PART OF!" Glenn screamed, pointing at his weakened friends.

"NO!" Maiya gasped, turning her head away. "You-You said it thrilled you too... You even helped us. Why draw the line there?" She cried, breaking out of her brother's grasp. "Why draw the line with people who mistreated you?!"

"Don't you dare- Don't you try to even turn this on me! I know what I've done unlike you! I know what kind of person I am! And I don't try to give some bullshit justification!" Glenn turned away, hiding the hot tears in his eyes.

That was when he saw Michonne fully, and what had been done to her.

"What... happened.. to her... arm.." Glenn seethed as he stared at the woman. "WHAT DID YOU DO WITH IT?!" He grabbed Dante by the wrist, pulling him forward with a surprising amount of force.

"I-I amputated it," Dante gulped, raising his hand up in defense. "It-It's-" He used his free hand to point to the counter where her severed arm lay; already peeled of its skin.

"You sick bastard..." Glenn hissed as he immediately let go of Dante, walking over to the counter. "Is this a trophy for you?!"

"Of course not. It's a model to show how the nervous system works." Dante brushed himself off of the scuffle confidently. "I think we should have all the body systems on display for reference."

"Commander, do we continue?" Dante turned his attention to Maiya, stepping up to her.

"I can't put you before humanity, Glenn. I love you, but this is what has kept me alive. It's been my purpose," She said as she gave the order. However, Glenn with his back still turned to the pair, rasped:

"You... don't love me."

"Not as much as your work. You just acted like I was the thing you loved the most because you knew what I would do for you just to keep you in my life. You knew you were the last thing I had left. But I should have known.." Glenn's voice cracked as this realization came to pass. "This would always be more important to you. Despite you telling me how we were raised to love and protect.."

"Glenn... I love you... Finding you again was one of the happiest moments in my life. I protected you and considered starting a war for you," Maiya explained patiently as if to compose herself.

"But you don't deny it?" Glenn sadly asked, ignoring Maiya's response.

She shut her eyes and lowered her head, unable to look at him. Even from where Glenn stood, he could see tears spilling down her cheeks, sparkling in the light.

Glenn knew he was right at that moment, but he so desperately wished he was wrong. He wished she would blurt out how wrong he was and confirm she did truly love him.

That she didn't just tell him what he needed to hear so he would work for her.

That he was the most important thing in her life.

But she did not nor would she.

"I won't let you stop me," Maiya declared, pushing past Dante. "This is for the good of human-"

"I'm not going to. But do you really believe what you're doing is for humanity? Or is it for the benefit of yourself?" Glenn interrupted, catching his sister by her shoulders.

"Wha- What?" Maiya's composure began to crack, which Glenn wanted. It was his last card to play, and she would end up hating him for this. But this is what she left him with, she forced his hand.

She had made him do this.

"Your experiments, they're built on a lie, aren't they? This castle, these justifications, even your leadership is all a _lie,_ " Glenn struggled to say, knowing how much this would hurt Maiya. "The closest thing you've been to a 'commander' is working as a fitness trainer for law enforcement."

"You think these people don't know that?! You think I've- I've been lying to them?!" Maiya demanded.

"I think you've been lying to yourself. I think- I think you've convinced yourself doing all this was worthwhile; was for some greater purpose. But really, it was for yourself." It felt cathartic for Glenn to say this like his conscience had been waiting a long time for this moment.

 _As if the words he spoke were meant for himself._

"And this- this Commander Rhee isn't you. My sister would not stand back and use people as a means to an end. She would take responsibility for her actions and be disgusted by what she's enabled."

Everyone in the room remained stunned at Glenn's sudden calmness, staring at him in silence. However, Dante's voice soon broke that silence.

"We called her a commander because of how she led. Because of how she could command and unite us. How many other leaders could do that?! That takes strength... Strength I could never have, but always admired.." Dante trailed off. "It's what made us respect her."

Maiya let out a cry when she heard Dante's words, bringing her gloved hands to stifle her sobs. "Dante? I always thought you would be a much better leader. You were- You are so much smarter than me! Around you- All of you," She addressed the medics around the room. "I felt so damn inferior. I thought constantly how there was nothing stopping you from taking over. You probably would do a much better job," She chuckled in spite of her tears.

"I always wanted to be a scientist..." She sighed sadly, slumping down in a nearby stool.

The medics slowly took off their masks to look at their leader as Dante approached her and took hold of her hands.

"Since I've known you, I envied your strength and resilience. Even with that stupid chain, I was still a weakling" Dante tiredly smiled.

"Why did you all really do this then?" Glenn pressed on, interrupting their tender moment.

"... I was never happy!" Maiya snapped up from her stool. "I wasn't happy with myself! I knew I would never amount to anything in the old world! How could I?! Everyone around me, seemed to be going somewhere. Gale was already a doctor! Wren a dancer in New York! And Dahlia was on the brink of becoming a famous model! And where did that leave me?! The family failure!"

"I was just living day by day without any purpose..." Maiya sighed once again. "But then it was the end of the world and that was the best thing to ever happen to me. I could finally do something! For once, it was me who had a 'scientific idea.' It was me who thought to be innovative! I gave everyone a purpose besides surviving! If we found a cure..." She grinned madly. "I would finally be important..."

Glenn could only watch his sister in pity as she collapsed to the floor in sobs. He made no move to comfort her as did no one else. They just waited until she picked herself back up again to continue.

"But not only that... I suppose I did lie to you all." Maiya looked at her medics. "I wasn't as strong or brave as you thought. I was scared of this new world. At every turn, there was only death. I couldn't die without accomplishing this idea! I didn't want to be forgotten... I wanted to leave a legacy... How many times were the people like us forgotten about and the men like Negan given all the credit?! How many times was our history erased?! How many times were people like us erased from our own history?!" Maiya fumed.

"Exactly," Dante agreed angrily. "That was what was wrong with the old world. And we weren't going to let that happen again. _That was our purpose._ "

Maiya crawled over to her brother, grabbing onto his shirt and crying onto him.

"I just wanted to be significant..."

"Even if it meant," Glenn murmured. "Becoming the very people you hated."

Maiya gave an inhumane howl as she pushed Glenn away, running out of the lab and back into the dark of the corridor.

All Glenn could do was follow the sound of her wails.

* * *

Carl woke to a dull pain stinging his whole body, groaning as moved to sit upright.

"Shhh. Just lay back down, Carl," A voice said from nearby. "The medics will be here soon."

"Jeffrey, you motherfuc-"

"Carl, is that any way to talk to your uncle? I know you're upset, but you and your dad are safe," Jeffrey reassured, leaning forward on the chair beside the foot of the bed.

"Dad!" Carl turned to the left, seeing Rick unconscious on the next bed. He tried to move closer to him only to find he was handcuffed to the bed. "What the hell?! As if it wasn't enough to electrocute me!"

"I am related to a sheriff after all. I have to take precautions," Jeffrey smirked; a gun revealed to be in his hand.

"YOU BETRAYED YOUR FAMILY!" Carl lurched forward, but was jerked back from the handcuffs.

"I kept my family alive! You and Rick will get to live!" Jeffrey exclaimed.

"But not the others? Not our friends?" Carl glared; his chest heaving in pure rage.

"It wasn't easy to convince Maiya!" Jeffrey protested, getting up from his chair and leaning on his cane. "But what matters is that we'll be together now."

"As prisoners?" Carl grimaced, struggling with his cuffed hand.

"For a while." Jeffrey walked over to Carl's bedside with his cane. "But we can finally be a family again."

"...I see. You're right," Carl returned Jeffrey's smile. "It's been so long since we've been that. It's been so long since I've felt that."

"It'll take some time getting used to, but we'll be okay," Jeffrey patted his nephew's hair. "I never told you this, but me and Rick were never close. Not like brothers should be because of the age gap... I am more of your brother than your uncle."

"You're not that much older than me," Carl agreed. "We were raised together like brothers."

"And now that you're here with me, I'll make sure nothing bad ever happens to you again. I'll protect you," Jeffrey firmly stated.

"Jeff?" Carl looked at his uncle deeply.

"Yeah? What is it?" Jeffrey asked earnestly.

"Will my dad understand?"

"When he wakes up, which should be soon, I'll explain everything. You'll have to help me convince him. He'll listen to you-"

As Jeffrey talked, Carl had slipped his wrist free of the handcuff, keeping up with the conversation as a distraction and as a way to buy more time. And before Jeffrey could finish his sentence, Carl kicked him off the bed and onto the hard floor below.

Jeffrey groaned as he hit the cold floor roughly. Immediately, he stretched out his hand to grab onto the edge of the bed. He shakily lifted himself up only to see Carl standing beside him with his cane.

"Carl!" Jeffrey reached out for his nephew, who only threw the cane across the room.

"NO!" Jeffrey fell back onto the ground, yelping out in pain as he did so.

"I'm related to a sheriff after all. I have to take precautions. And since you won't be needing this," Carl took the gun Jeffrey had left behind on the chair. "I don't even know why you have this. I doubt you would have pulled the trigger."

"I should have!" Jeffrey snarled.

"I don't think you even know how to use this," Carl mocked. "Well, have fun explaining to my dad what you told me. And don't leave out the part where-"

Sudden wails from outside interrupted the boy, forcing him to be silent and listen.

Instantly, Jeffrey recognized the wailing, calling out:

"Maiya!"

Carl's eyes darkened upon hearing these words, cocking his gun in response. He left without another word to his uncle, following the sound of her cries instead.

* * *

 _The smell of cookies baking greeted Rick as he found himself in a familiar house in Alexandria._

 _"Forget about me, sunshine?" A distant voice asked._

 _"...Carol? Is that you?" Rick called out, trying to pinpoint where she was._

 _"Who else?" A figure began to emerge, taking the form of Carol. "It's good to see you even though I've seen you in better shape."_

 _Rick could not help but weep as he saw his friend once again even if it was just a dream. "I'm just glad to see you. I could never forget about you."_

 _"Well, that's a relief to hear." Carol took a tray of cookies out of the oven. "God, you really do look like a mess."_

 _"I'm sure I do..." Rick sighed. "But I'm in an even bigger mess right now."_

 _"And why are you telling me this?" Carol took a bite of a cookie._

 _"Be-Because it's what's happening!"_

 _"I know. So why are you here talking to me instead of doing something about it? The Rick Grimes I knew was a doer. Not a talker... mostly," Carol laughed._

 _"I don't even know where to begin. Everyone's probably dead now... Or will be soon," Rick lamented._

 _"After everything's that's happened, don't tell me you're back to being beaten-down Rick." Carol rolled her eyes disappointedly. "I know the apocalypse is a depressing place, but this is ridiculous."_

 _"Is the after-life better then?" Rick wondered._

 _"Depends on where you go," Carol shrugged. "But nothing is better than actual life. At least you're guaranteed something."_

 _"And yet I've never been more uncertain," Rick confessed._

 _"Alright. Enough is enough. Your friends- Your son is trapped in this castle and you're going waste time talking with me? I understand we haven't seen each other in a long time, but that can wait. I'm not going anywhere," Carol assured._

 _"We didn't even get to tell each other goodbye.." Rick lowered his head in remembrance._

 _"...Goodbye, Rick," Carol smiled regretfully._

 _"Wait! I'm not- I'm not ready. Like I said, I don't know what to do. Please, Carol. Tell me what I need to do to fix this!" Rick pleaded frantically._

 _"First, you gotta wake up, sunshine."_

Rick's blue eyes opened instantly, gleaming brightly unlike before where they had turned dull. But just as suddenly as they opened, they narrowed in determination.

* * *

A/N: Only 2 chapters left of plot, readers! I need to hear some predictions, theories, and/or feedback!


	38. 서른여덟 Man of The World

"May my mercy prevail over my wrath."

~ Rick Grimes

Sobbing loudly, Maiya frantically ran up the stairs to the second floor. Several times, she stumbled over her own feet as her tears blurred her vision, forcing her to grab onto the railing to pull herself up.

Upon reaching her room, she practically kicked the door down in a frenzy. She knocked over and pushed anything that was in her path, sending objects flying across the room.

She was after one thing and one thing only.

Desk drawers were forced open and thrown to the ground; valuable papers and tokens littered the ground like trash in search of the one thing that could fix this.

When her fingers felt the plastic hidden deep within one of the drawers, she gave a gasp of relief. Flicking it on, she examined the flame elatedly whilst holding onto the lighter tenderly.

"Don't," A sudden voice warned from the doorway.

"It'll be quick- If that's what you're worried about." Maiya never took her eyes off the flame in front of her. "I know there's a chemical in the lab that'll make it instant," She laughed unexpectedly. "If there's one thing I know about chemicals and science, of course it would be that."

"It doesn't have to be this way. Listen, Maiya," Glenn attempted to reason with her, but she would have none of it.

"We'll all die together. A quick and painless death. Wherever we go, we'll go together. We'll leave this world together." She grabbed her brother's hand tightly. "Isn't that what you wanted? For me to finally put family first?"

Glenn opened his mouth to protest, but before he could even utter a sound Maiya shoved him and ran out the door.

However, Glenn managed to grab her ankle and pull her down with him. She hit the floor roughly; never losing hold of her precious lighter. Managing to wriggle out of her brother's weak hold, she was back up and out of sight rather quickly.

Glenn scrambled to his feet and chased after her desperately, throwing himself at her at one point. They tumbled down the stairs with Glenn wrestling with his sister to grab the lighter, but their fight was interrupted when they hit the nearby wall. Thus, preventing the siblings from falling down any further and seriously injuring themselves.

"No one else has to die!" Glenn grabbed his sister's wrist. "We can still make this work!"

"Hypocrite!" Maiya hit him with her free hand. "You're just as guilty as I am!" She stood up fiercely, gazing down at her pathetic excuse of a brother.

"I know..." Glenn groaned, sighing deeply in pain as he slowly rose to his feet.

"You think that's what I want?" She looked at him incredulously. "No... Our mistakes- Our crimes deserve to be burned and forgotten." Her voice dropped to a whisper.

"We have no place in this future."

A single gunshot rang out over the raging wind and thunder just as she finished her sentence. Glenn's hand reacted before his mind, slowly reaching out as her body went stiff and fell backwards. His hand had only brushed up against her waist, grasping onto the sickle that she carried.

"M-Maiya?" Glenn's voice cracked, holding the sickle limply. "M-Maiya?" He took a few steps down, seeing his sister's body lying against a railing.

"I'm sorry it had to be this way." Carl came out from the darkness, aiming his gun at Glenn. "But you both deserve to die," He said unsympathetically.

* * *

Rick shifted his eyes to the side, glaring at the handcuffs that chained his hand. He shook it harshly, unsuccessful in his attempt to free himself.

A nearby groan caught his attention, causing him to jerk at his restraints even harder. But the voice of Jeffrey temporarily stopped him.

"Stop- Rick," He croaked out from the next bed, seemingly exhausted.

"Where... is... my... son?" Rick stressed out each word dangerously; his eyes blazing into Jeffrey's soul.

"He- He- left," Jeffrey stammered in fear.

"TELL ME WHERE!" Rick roared, yanking at his cuff with so much force that it left a red mark around his wrist.

Acting on reflex, Jeffrey leaned back, speechless and visibly shaking at this outburst.

Growling in frustration, Rick pulled at the handcuffs again, feeling the strain that it was putting on his bones.

"W-What are you- Stop! You're going to break your-"

The sound of a horrific crack and snap interrupted Jeffrey's warning, but confirmed what he was about to say. Now completely liberated of the handcuffs, Rick raised his broken and bloody hand while jerking forward and grabbing Jeffrey by the collar with his other one.

"N-No! Let me go! You don't understand!" Jeffrey cried out, flailing out his arms in defense.

"I understand perfectly," Rick snarled, bringing the young man in closer. "You are a coward."

"NO!" Jeffrey grabbed on desperately to his brother. "I'm here for you, Richie! Can't you see that?! But you never could see that! Even back then, it was always Shane! He was the one that took my place! The one who saw you get shot and saved you! The one who was there in the hospital because I couldn't be! Well, he's dead and I'm here now!" Jeffrey laughed hysterically.

Rick had barely any time to process what was just said when a gunshot went off in the distance. Jeffrey's eyes seemed to convey that something irreversible had taken place, and who had been the one to fire the bullet.

"Carl..." Rick's whispered as he wrapped his whole hand and arm around the boy and threw him down recklessly.

"Rick!" Jeffrey moaned, reaching out for his brother in suffering. "Don't leave me! Not like this!"

"I'm your brother!"

"You're no brother of mine," were the last words Rick said before leaving.

* * *

"C-Carl?" Glenn asked incredulously; his eyes shifting wildly between the boy and his sister.

Carl gave no response, coldly squeezing the trigger instead.

Nothing happened.

Confused, Carl turned the weapon over in alarm. And that was when Glenn attacked.

Taking advantage of this plight, Glenn struck Carl's hand with the sickle, drawing blood from his cut.

Jumping back in pain and nearly losing his balance because of it, Carl accidentally dropped the gun onto the steps below. He staggered down the stairs while clenching his wound, keeping close to the rail.

Blood was dripping everywhere, making everything wet and slippery. He was nearing the bottom where Maiya's body lied; he was so close to an escape.

But then the floorboard broke.

And he fell down.

He screamed as he flew forward, bracing himself for the hard impact.

It came with a collision against the same railing Maiya was against. The breath was taken out of Carl's lungs from such a blow, and he remained there in frozen panic for a minute.

But it was enough time for Glenn to approach.

Carl slowly turned himself over, seeing the man standing just a few steps above. Glenn moved carefully and calculatedly, regarding the boy dangerously.

Preparing to strike, but this time fatally.

As hardened and numb as Carl was, this was sight enough to scare him.

Because what approached was no longer his friend or even a man.

It was a demon.

Too deep in rage and bloodthirst, Glenn aimed his sickle at the one thing that he was ready to stab and rip out of Carl's socket.

The eye that was regarding him so fearfully.

Carl gripped onto the railing, weaponless and vulnerable, readying himself for what was to come. While Glenn rushed forward madly, tears falling from his eyes as he swung his arm upwards towards Carl's skull, his watch spilled out of his pocket and rolled towards the boy.

But his sickle never struck Carl.

By the time Glenn could comprehend what had happened, it was too late to stop. The sickle had impaled Rick in the chest.

As Carl watched the sickle come for his eye, out of nowhere Rick had shoved Carl with his good hand and placed himself between Glenn and his son.

Glenn felt the blood splatter onto his skin; his eyes widening in horror once he realized the truth. A strangled sound emitted from deep within him as he dropped the sickle, grabbing onto Rick tightly.

"Y-You dumbass..." Glenn choked, sinking to the floor with the man. "W-Why?"

"Because I couldn't let you do this," Rick sighed as tears rolled down his face. "You saved me. It was my turn to save you."

Hearing these words, Glenn's entire world shattered and crumbled down with it. Giving a howl that not even the most miserable of creatures could rival, he hurriedly let go of Rick and went in search of the lost gun.

It was not long before he retrieved it, placing it in his mouth in agony. Just as he was about to place his finger on the trigger, a soft moan from nearby stopped him.

Maiya moved ever so slightly, clutching at her bullethole and moaning in pain.

He watched her in disbelief before slowly moving towards her.

If she were indeed a walker, he wouldn't deny her his flesh.

However, her eyes fluttered as she came back into consciousness and she gave another humane moan.

Glenn gently lifted her up, careful not to hurt her anymore, and carried her away solemnly.

He gave one last look back to Rick, who was now talking softly to Carl. He would not get to say his last farewells to him; he would not get to apologize for what he did.

He knew he didn't deserve to be included in Rick's last moments; his presence would only corrupt them.

He had done too much of that already.

* * *

"No! No!" Carl huddled near his dad, crying hysterically. "I-I can take you to the lab- Dad, please! Let me take you! You're going to be okay! You're going to-" His last words were incoherent as he broke down into uncontrollable sobs.

"No, Carl." Rick gently placed his hand on his son's hair. " _You_ will be okay. Even without me, you have to go on." Rick smiled through his tears. "No more kid stuff remember? You have- You will be a man, my son."

"Y-You shouldn't have- I said I would rather be blind than-" Carl broke down again. "I can't lose you too- Why... Why..."

"A father's job is to protect..." Rick answered quietly, looking at his son emotionally.

"No," Carl wept. "A father's job... Is just to love."

"Rick! Rick! I-" Jeffrey suddenly entered with his cane, pausing when he saw what was before him. "No... NO!"

"Help me prop him against the railing!" Carl exclaimed. They both cautiously moved Rick to the railing as they did not want him to die lying on his back.

He deserved a death better than that.

"Richie, I-I- Who did this?! Who?!" Jeffrey sobbed, clutching onto his brother's arm.

"It was Glenn... I should've killed him- I should've- But I still can." Carl's eyes darkened in anger, looking at the abandoned gun and sickle.

"No," Rick instructed sternly to a speechless Carl. "No more war. No more bloodshed. No more violence. Let it end here. Let it end with me."

"Richie, I'm so sorry! This is all my fault!" Jeffrey whimpered.

"Jeff, I'm the one who should say sorry," Rick sniffled, wiping his brother's tears. "For not being the brother I was supposed to be. But you-" He forced Jeffrey to look into his eyes. "You protected me back when that trident should have killed me. I was just following your lead." Rick glanced at his son with a weak smile.

"Take care of them, Jeffrey." Rick blinked back his own tears while holding his brother's hand tightly. "Promise me you will."

"I-I promise," Jeffrey nodded his head before his body was wracked by more sobs.

"And Carl- I'm sorry I wasn't always there for you. I should've- I could've been a better father," Rick sighed, feeling his body losing his strength.

"Oh, dad, you were the best." Carl hugged his dad, letting his blood stain his own shirt. "You can't leave me... We were supposed to beat this world. Together. You can't go..."

"I'm sorry," Rick cried. "I couldn't beat this world. But you will. Both of you will. And you'll bring in the new world. You can do what I couldn't... If not for me, then for Judith."

"W-We will. Judith will know who her father is. And her mother," Carl choked. "I still have the picture," He gave a small laugh. "After everything, I still have that."

Rick returned his laugh, clutching at his chest as it hurt to even give a chuckle.

"Rick..." A new voice entered. "What happened?!" Morgan ran to his friend's side, followed by a stunned Ezekiel.

"It doesn't matter..." Rick sighed wearily as his lids started to grow heavy. His skin was already a deathly pale, and his blood now covered his entire torso and the floor beneath him.

"We came too late..." Morgan dropped to his knees, weeping alongside the rest of the men. "We came too late.."

"Morgan, watch after Carl. Please," Rick pleaded, clasping Morgan's hand firmly.

"As if he was my own," Morgan vowed; his voice shaking as he looked at Rick's blood smear on his skin.

"Thank you... Thank you..." Rick shut his eyes, his good hand falling to his side.

"And we shall honor you, Rick," Ezekiel affirmed, smiling through his tears.

Rick seemed to have not heard this as he looked at his son for the last time and said:

"Everything I've done... Every choice I've made was for you. I love you... Carl."

Carl buried his head in Rick's chest, giving him a kiss on the cheek. His tears falling onto his dad's face and wetting his clothes as he said the final words Rick Grimes would hear:

"I love you, too, dad."

* * *

Glenn had just passed the castle entrance when the door swung open, letting in torrents of rain and gusts of wind.

A soaked group of people had arrived, weakened and devastated from the floods and losing one of their own.

Glenn gave no hint of surprise or even acknowledgment. He neither asked how they managed to get through the gate or the guards, continuing to walk forth instead.

The group looked at him in silence, regarding him with concern. His face was emotionless despite carrying his injured sister, who had slipped back into unconsciousness.

He wore no expression of hatred or cruelty. There was no fire of rage burning in his heart. No thoughts of vengeance plaguing his mind.

"...Go to him," Glenn stated numbly, motioning his head to the nearby staircases. With no further words, he kept shuffling towards the lab.

Cindy hesitantly pulled out a pocketknife, seeing that not only was Glenn's back turned but he was at his most vulnerable.

She could just drive it into his neck, if not his neck, and it would all be over. She took a step forward, raising her shaking hand.

Just as she started marching towards the man, a hand stopped her.

"Don't." Morgan gripped her shoulder, holding her back from taking another step forward.

Cindy spun around defensively, looking at him appallingly.

"If you do-" Morgan glanced at Glenn. "That is where this life will get you."

Cindy looked back at the now vanishing Glenn; her eyes widening in distress. Tara, Gabriel, Aaron, and Eric pushed past her and rushed forward in Glenn's direction.

Meanwhile, Morgan had let go of the girl and had disappeared to the staircase with Ezekiel.

Cindy remained alone in the entryway; her arm frozen in mid-air still clenching the knife.

Dante was staring off dazedly at the ceiling with his back pressed against the counter when Glenn entered the lab.

"Maiya?!" Someone exclaimed from nearby.

Dante made no attempt to get up to see what was going on until Glenn had placed his sister before him on the table.

"Help... her..." Glenn grimaced at him.

Dante gaped at the man, slowly rising to his feet. The other medics were beginning to swarm around the table as well, unsure of how to react.

"If you want to finally do something important with your life, then help her!" Glenn snapped. He shoved some of them out of the way and went over to the cabinets. He pulled each one open, revealing his shivering and naked friends.

"Hey," He said softly to Michonne. "It's over. You're getting out of here."

Michonne blinked out him; tears coming out of her eyes when she looked to her now missing arm. Glenn could only avert his eyes in shame and remorse.

"Oh my God..." Tara gasped upon seeing the lab. The other group members entered the lab a few seconds later, but nonetheless horrified.

"Get them dressed," Glenn rasped as he helped Sherry out of her prison. "Make sure they are dressed."

Tara slowly walked over to Abraham, trembling as she did so. Gabriel followed, pushing a nearby wheelchair along the linoleum floor.

Aaron and Eric had grabbed the piles of clothes and hurried over to their friends. They began dressing them, covering their bandaged and stitched bodies with mismatched clothes.

Once Glenn saw that they would be okay and that his sister was being operated on, he quietly exited.

* * *

Carl was still crying into Jeffrey's embrace when the Castle guards descended, wet and confused. What they witnessed upon entering the castle was a bloodbath.

Or it appeared that way, initially.

They stood at the top of the stairs, looking down at the huddled group who were mourning their leader. They had no idea what happened to their own one.

"It's over," Jeffrey murmured; his eyes bloodshot. "We lost."

"W-Where's our Commander?" Siddiq stammered.

"I-I d-don't know..." Jeffrey replied dully. "But it's over. You don't need _those_ anymore." At Jeffrey's command, the guards tentatively let their weapons fall to the ground.

"I c-can't do it, Jeff. I can't-" Carl cried, holding up the sickle. Jeffrey timidly took the weapon from him, and placed it by Rick's temple before dropping it and sobbing.

"It has to be one of you- H-He would have wanted it." Morgan placed the sickle back in Carl's hand.

Carl shook his head adamantly, wiping his eye with his clean hand. The silence of everyone had suddenly given way to a new sound; the sound of a pocket watch ticking.

Carl turned his head towards the opened watch, seeing that his father's blood speckled the inside of it. As he reached for it, footsteps were heard approaching and the sound of wheels being pushed.

"Carl... You have to," Morgan urged.

"How long has it been?" Carl regarded the pocket watch skeptically just as the remaining members arrived.

The rescuers and the victims all stared at the kneeling men in disbelief, unable to cry. They were all too dismayed that their leader was now dead just a few hours after seeing him alive. They were all too traumatized after what they had been through and this was just another blow.

"How long has it been?" Carl asked again desperately.

No one had an answer, only looking around in confusion. Carl was on the verge of crying again, breathing heavily as he struggled to keep himself calm.

"I-It takes 10 to 12 minutes for a person to turn," Dante said, stepping forward from the grief-stricken crowd. His clothes were covered in fresh blood as well as his gloves and surgical mask. He pulled his mask down, continuing to speak.

"If they die naturally. Hours if they are bit then," He explained tiredly, coming close to Rick's body. He placed his hand on his skin, feeling that it was cold. He then took the pocket watch from Carl, estimating in his head how much time had passed from when Glenn arrived with Maiya to her surgery to now.

"I don't believe this..." Dante gasped. "There's no way..." He looked at Carl in amazement.

"He hasn't turned."

* * *

Now able to fully relive what he had done, Glenn fell to the dirt and heaved all the contents of his stomach. The bloodstains on his clothes and skin sickened him. He hoped the falling rain would wash them out along with his endless tears.

He continued to cry on the ground for a while before pacing around the flooded areas in agony.

Then, an idea that came to his mind made him stop.

Unsure of sister's fate, but sure of Rick's, made him stand up and walk towards the gate.

The floods could carry him away.

Or the wilderness could kill him.

Whatever was in the swamps could take him.

All of these thoughts pushed him forward to open the gate. He would disappear and never be seen again.

His mind screamed to him that it's what he should have done so long ago. It screamed over and over that it wasn't supposed to be this way.

And it felt like it won't stop.

He spotted three figures in the distance, and he knew how to make this screaming stop forever.

Yes, he would let walkers eat him. Tear him limb by limb and devour his flesh. He deserved a painful and miserable death. He deserved to die alone.

Glenn quickened his pace, eager to finally end this wretched life of his.

Eager to end this endless screaming.

"Hey!" One of the figures called to him, ending all hopes of death.

"W-Wha-" Glenn sputtered.

"We don't mean any harm!" The figure waved his hands.

Glenn remained silent, letting the people come to him.

"We saw fireworks like a few weeks ago, and we've been trying to find the source!" The man wiped his brow. "Did you see them?"

Glenn nodded slowly. "We set them off."

"That's great to hear. We've been trying to find shelter for so long now and we thought the fireworks meant civilization was nearby. Oh, let me introduce myself. My name's Richard."

Glenn nearly broke down again upon hearing this name.

"Um," The man paused, noticing Glenn's expression. "This is Alicia. And this little girl is Clementine."

"...I'm Glenn," He forced himself to say.

"So... Can we come with you?" Richard questioned hesitantly.

Glenn stayed quiet for a few seconds. Then, he took in a deep breath and said:

"I have to ask three questions first.

How many walkers have you killed?

How many people have you killed?"

Glenn paused again before asking his final question.

"...Why?"

* * *

A/N: The next chapter will be the conclusion of Something To Fear.

I'll just be crying in the dark until then. This chapter was so emotionally draining for me.


	39. 서른아홉 Shelter

"You were in trouble. You were trapped. Glenn didn't know you, but he helped you. He put himself in danger for you. And that started it all. From Atlanta, to my daddy's farm, to the prison, to here, to this moment now. Not as strangers. As family. Because Glenn chose to be there for you that day a long time ago. That was the decision that changed everything.

It started with both of you, and it just grew. To all of us. To sacrifice for each other, to suffer and stand, to grieve, to give, to love, to live... To fight for each other."

~Maggie Greene-Rhee

"Hey. I'm sorry I haven't been here in a while. It's not that I didn't want to be- I-I," Glenn sighed, running his hand through his hair. "Was I really this awkward when we first met?"

"Yeah. I guess I still am if I can't even talk without stuttering," He chuckled. "It reminds me of when I first met you. I was left stuttering just from the sight of you."

"Well, since the last time I was here, I finally completed what I set out to do. I buried _him._ It was as hard as I imagined, going back there and seeing everything-" He cleared his throat. "I never thought I could do it. I wanted to give up halfway. But I buried each Savior's remains. At every outpost. It took all day and night to finish."

"The others wanted to help. Dwight especially. But I told him it was me who needed to do it." Glenn paused, lowering his head shamefully. "I still can't forgive Negan for what he did to you... I think it'll take the rest of my life. I guess that makes me a hypocrite. "

"Speaking of forgiveness... they left. Just like they said they would," Glenn sighed. "They were all I had known... They were some of the last people who have memories of you and-" He stopped, wiping his eyes as he thought of the list of names that ran through his head. "I know they were unable to cope- This place just caused them too much pain. It reminded them too much of what they lost."

"I thought about leaving too. Permanently. But you're here. Maiya's here. This was- This is where we made our home," Glenn murmured.

"And I plan to make it everyone's- _anyone's_ home. Whoever steps through the gate will be welcomed. Sasha, Ezekiel, Carl, Dante, and Cindy all decided that they- _we will give them shelter._ Maiya and I already made the signs for each community: _It was a long way forward to Alexandria, or whichever community. But it is in the people where we find shelter."_

"That is what they want to do too. Michonne left for Georgia. Aaron and Eric departed north towards Canada. And Gabriel and Rosita went west. And Dwight and Sherry set out for Ohio. I plan to go with Tara and Cindy to rebuild Oceanside soon, so I'll be away for a while. But I'll be back. There's still so much I need to do. I've stopped wasting time on my tears," Glenn confessed softly.

"Though I wished they could have stayed, I know that wouldn't be possible. Or productive if we want to create a new world. I might never see them again... But I hold onto the hope that we will see each other again. Just like I hold onto the hope I'll see you again." Glenn placed his hand on the gravestone with a sad smile.

"Oh, before I forget to mention, Gabriel was able to fulfill one last duty as a priest. He married Sasha and Abraham," Glenn grinned as he reminisced about the wedding. "So that's another thing that recently happened."

"Do you like the new improvements? Carl thought the cemetery looked too empty, so Maiya suggested that it mirror the garden at The Castle. The trees and shrubs really do add beauty to it. Especially in the spring when the cherry blossoms bloom. That should be happening any day now." Glenn glanced around at the flora in anticipation. "Morgan is almost finished with the memorial. Two hands; one reaching out to help the other. Around the hands, are various weapons to show that we won't raise our hand until we've first extended it."

"Some other art projects we got going around is that Olivia taught Maiya how to paint and it turns out she's really good at it. They decided to paint a mural on the Alexandria walls. They've already started and it's going to be of all the people we've lost- So you'll be up there. I only wished I still had a photo of you... Like the one of our child that's on the fridge."

"I'm surprised that Maiya decided to live here instead of The Castle. But I'm glad she did," Glenn beamed. "Dante knows what he's doing. We are already planning to restart manufacturing and repairing infrastructure, which is what I'll be doing after I'm done at Oceanside."

"But this-" Glenn placed a binder filled with papers and pictures at the foot of the grave. "This is what I'm proudest of. I've collected documents about everyone who is gone. I interviewed the people closest to them, I gathered any pictures of them, and I have piled together any notes or letters they have written. So we'll never forget them. So when I die, and all of this is stored in a museum the world will know who they were."

 _"Who you were."_

"I will be the one to write our history and I will not leave out anything. I promise that it will be told as it happened even if it shows me as the villain," Glenn assured. "Which is why I couldn't throw those damned bats into the river. As much as I wanted to see them sink, they were a part of me. But not anymore."

"It's you, our child, my sisters, everyone who I have ever loved that are a part me. And it is only through me will people see that."

"Oh, but how can I when I can't even forgive myself? Our friends that left have the potential to forgive me. If we do see each other again, I hope- _I want_ to be a better man. One that is deserving of their forgiveness," Glenn admitted distressingly.

"And Carl..." Glenn trailed off as he thought of the boy. "Morgan and he grew really close. But it still won't replace what I took from him-" He struggled to say as he started crying.

"But it's good enough," Carl suddenly came forth, kneeling beside the grave. "Jeffrey became a mentor for me and Judith. He became more than just my uncle. He became my older brother. And every day I look at him, I see my dad in him. Morgan has kept his promise. He became like a second dad to me. Because of them, they have helped me lead Alexandria to where it is today. Oh, and Judith is still growing. She really looks like my mom. I'll always remember how you welcomed her into this world. I wished I could have welcomed your child too. Thank you...Maggie."

Glenn continued crying, but instantly stopped when Carl said:

"You told me you would teach me how to play the guitar today. C'mon, let's go."

"Y-Yeah, that's right. I completely forgot." Glenn rose to his feet, placing the pocket-watch on the stone. He gave one last smile, whispering something as he put his fingers to his lips and then on the watch.

Carl took Glenn by the hand, surprising the latter. But he didn't let go or pull away. He just let Carl lead him past the cemetery; towards the setting sun.

 _"Wait just a little longer. I'll be there to see you."_

* * *

There is a story where Glenn Rhee and Abraham Ford were killed one night in autumn; where Sasha sacrificed her life for her family.

That is not this story.

There is a story where everyone is suffering because evil has prevailed. Where Negan has essentially won. Where Carl is dead and Rick is grieving. Where there is no ending in sight because pain and sorrow have darkened the way.

That is not this story.

There is a story where Glenn Rhee is erased from history and thus forgotten.

That is not this story.

This is a story where vengeance took a man named Glenn Rhee down a violent and horrific path; a path littered with the bodies of those he's murdered.

This is a story that will forever be stained with tears and bloodshed and death.

Yet this is also a story where families are rediscovered, love is rekindled, and men can be redeemed.

This is a story where Glenn spends the rest of his 60 years tirelessly rebuilding communities, advising leaders, writing documents, mentoring youth, gathering supplies, constructing buildings, paving roads, working in factories, growing agriculture, raising livestock, and most of all,

Living his life not for himself, but for the people around him.

Deep down south, traces of this story's beginnings remain in what was known as Georgia. Soon it will all be gone, for nature will reclaim what was once its own.

But in the hearts and minds of those who have passed through, of those who existing decades later, will this story be remembered.

Where the hope of a possible cure overcame what was once something to fear.

* * *

A/N: And it's finished! I can't even believe this! It's been 2 years and it is over!

Stay tuned for my postface, in which I talk about my thoughts and acknowledgments.


End file.
